Tagged: firewall-basics
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Does Blocking an App on Mac Also Block the Programs It Runs?
Many Mac apps fetch things through helper programs and tools like curl. Why a firewall block on the app can miss them, how MiniFirewall covers them since 1.0.2, and why the cover never runs the other way.
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Why curl Is Connecting to the Internet on Your Mac, and Which App Started It
curl in your Mac firewall is almost always an app fetching something through a tool that ships with macOS. Why the firewall names the tool instead of the app, and how to find out who started it.
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A Firewall That Asks You Questions Does Not Work
Approve-or-deny prompts look like the thorough design and reliably produce the opposite. Why prompting firewalls train people to click Allow, and what to build instead.
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Does the Mac Firewall Block Outgoing Connections?
No. The firewall built into macOS blocks only incoming connections, and no setting inside it changes that. Here is what it does cover, and what you need for the other direction.
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Sending or Receiving: Which Direction Should You Block?
Every firewall asks whether to block connections going out, coming in, or both. What the question means in plain terms, and the right answer for common cases.
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What Mac System Traffic Is Normal? A Guide to the Names You Will See
trustd, nsurlsessiond, mDNSResponder and the rest. What each of these programs is, why it connects to the internet, and which ones you must never block.