firewall
or fire wall
a partition made of fireproof material to prevent the spread of a fire from one part of a building or ship to another or to isolate an engine compartment, as on a plane, automobile, etc.
a person, thing, or event that acts as a barrier or protection against something undesirable: The new employee handbook should create a firewall against unethical business conduct.
Digital Technology. an integrated collection of security measures designed to prevent unauthorized electronic access to a networked computer system.
Origin of firewall
1Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use firewall in a sentence
If the vendor is hosting the device, what does their system look like in terms of firewalls and other protections?
The damage leaps across natural firewalls, leaving an indisputable trail of destruction.
The Forgotten Genocidal War in Darfur Revealed in New Satellite Photos | Akshaya Kumar , Jacinth Planer | March 25, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAt Exeter, for example, Zuckerberg kept finding ways to evade firewalls and sites that were blocked.
British Dictionary definitions for firewall
a fireproof wall or partition used to impede the progress of a fire, as from one room or compartment to another
computing a computer system that isolates another computer from the internet in order to prevent unauthorized access
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for firewall
[ fîr′wôl′ ]
A software program or hardware device that restricts communication between a private network or computer system and outside networks.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for firewall
A means of separating a computer network from outside networks for security purposes. A server outside an organization's own network may be used to funnel all incoming and outgoing traffic to assist in keeping out viruses, as well as to prevent unauthorized outsiders from gaining access to a network.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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