<s>
ShieldsUP	B-Protocol
is	O
an	O
online	O
port	B-Protocol
scanning	O
service	O
created	O
by	O
Steve	O
Gibson	O
of	O
Gibson	O
Research	O
Corporation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
purpose	O
of	O
the	O
utility	O
is	O
to	O
alert	O
the	O
users	O
of	O
any	O
ports	O
that	O
have	O
been	O
opened	O
through	O
their	O
firewalls	B-Application
or	O
through	O
their	O
NAT	B-Protocol
routers	I-Protocol
,	O
which	O
can	O
be	O
used	O
by	O
malicious	O
users	O
to	O
take	O
advantage	O
of	O
security	O
vulnerabilities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
utility	O
scans	O
the	O
most	O
common	O
file	O
sharing	O
ports	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
all	O
service	B-Protocol
ports	I-Protocol
(	O
1-1056	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
user	O
defined	O
ports	O
,	O
in	O
sets	O
of	O
64	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
often	O
recommended	O
for	O
checking	O
port	B-Protocol
vulnerabilities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
scanning	O
servers	O
have	O
the	O
static	O
IP	B-Protocol
addresses	I-Protocol
of	O
4.79.142.192	O
to	O
4.79.142.207	O
.	O
</s>
