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NAT Routers and Internet Security
A Router, which is installed between your Internet connection (modem) and your computer, protects your system by making your computer virtually invisible to the outside world. Anyone trying to look at your computer from the internet will only see the router and not your computer system.
NAT stands for Network Address Translation. NAT technology translates IP addresses of a local area network, or individual computer, to a different IP address for the Internet. A NAT router is assigned your real internet IP address. All computers behind the NAT router will be assigned a different IP address by the router. These assigned IP addresses are not visible to the internet, so no one knows your computer's actual IP address. Because of this, you are invisible to the internet and are much, much, much less likely to be hacked. It acts very much like a firewall. It doesn't let anything into your computer that you didn't ask for.
Some routers have firewall software built into their internal construction. These routers offer the added security of firewall software, making it much more difficult for somebody to decode your router's data, thus making unauthorized access to your computer virtually impossible.
If you have a broadband connection, I strongly recommend you install a router. They are effective, easy to install and setup, and very inexpensive.
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