Disable dangerous features. Microsoft Windows systems come with a number of features enabled by default that introduce significant security risks while doing little or nothing for convenience. These include The Guest Account, Autorun, and even Automatic Updates because letting someone else who has no idea what software you’re running without you having tested the updates yet decide when changes should be made to your system is a bad idea. Microsoft Windows provides many features that are activated by default and are either unnecessary for the vast majority of users or poorly conceived from a security perspective. You should deactivate the features that you don’t need as each of them introduces its own risks.
Disable services that are unneeded. You should disable all unneeded services. Employ good email security practices. Make use of some basic email security practices to ensure that you do not invite the bad guys do not take advantage of you through phishing techniques, flood you with spam, or read your email. Install and maintain malware protection software. Malware remains a significant threat to Microsoft Windows systems, and running one without malware protection is dangerous. There are numerous options for antispyware and antivirus protections available so choose carefully well. Keep your malware protection software’s signature databases updated because the software only protects against the threats it can recognize, and don’t rely on your choice of antivirus software from six years gone by.
Update more than just MS Windows. In Microsoft Window’s world, the majority of the software most people run on their computers often comes from third party vendors who have no connection to Microsoft. The result of this situation is that when you install other software programs you have to track security updates for these applications in addition to the operating system. Simply getting your Microsoft updates every month doesn’t always take care of everything you may have installed. If you want to maintain security for your system you need to keep track of what’s installed and whether it has received any updates, because security goes beyond the core operating system.
Research and test your updates. It’s important to keep your system updated can become vulnerable even if you have received patches from Microsoft and other software vendors. It’s equally important, however, to make sure that you test and research your software updates before installing them into a production system. All too often, users discover that untested updates are a cure worse than the disease, as they undo the benefits of previously applied updates, open additional vulnerabilities in the system, and break functionality. Researching others’ experiences can help ensure that your system does not develop problems as the result of a bad update.
Investigate alternatives to your default application choices. Should you be using a Web browser other than Internet Explorer, such as Opera, Mozilla Firefox, or Google Chrome? Is the OTR encryption plugin or the protocol IM client Pidgin a better choice for your instant messaging needs, including security, than the original clients for gTalk, ICO, Y!M, MSN and AIM? Make sure you know the consequences of your decision before settling for default applications.
Before you assume MS Windows XP is what you need, research your options. The same principle that applies to applications also applies to the various operating systems. Different OSs can provide different functionality and security benefits. Just how certain are you that MS Windows XP is the operating system you need? Have you investigated other possibilities? What about MS Windows Vista or 2000? Have you checked out OpenVMS, OpenSolaris, or OpenBSD, for a server or Ubuntu Linux for a workstation?
Use a high quality desktop firewall. In many respects, desktop firewalls are applications like any other, but they deserve special attention for MS Windows security applications. In addition, even Windows servers are in effect desktop systems, so don’t let the fact that a given computer is a server deter you from installing a good desktop firewall protection application on the system if you can spare the RAM and the CPU cycles. On a user desktop system, desktop firewall software is even more important. If you rely on the defaults you get when you buy the computer you may get your system compromised without your even knowing it. MS Windows after Service Pack 2 provides Windows Firewall and is certainly better than nothing, but you can almost always do better. Look into alternatives to the Windows Firewall, and select the option that best suits your needs.
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