NIS Alert Question

Hi all: Was wondering if someone could explain to me in simple terms what the following alert from my NIS Firewall means:

"Invalid TCP Options Attack "

Wen I traced the IP Address it came from Milan, Italy.

Thanks in advance.

 

Symantec descibes this as "Attack Category: Pre-Attack Probe ".

Itt is a hack tool to gather information about your system prior to an actual invasion attempt.

The hacker sends packets that contain invalid/impossible code and examines the response from your PC. Just a way of gathering details about your system.

Some of this sort of thing can be a random error from a router that isn't behaving. "Invalid IP Options" for instance.

But this particular one seems to always be a real probe.

 

Thanks for your response Newt. I appreciate explanations in language I can understand, and you have explained this well.