1. Consider an upgrade: If your OS is safe, its upgraded version is safer. If you are using Windows XP Home edition, then an upgrade to either Professional or Media Center edition is a prudent thing to do. They are obviously more secure than the Home edition. Professional edition is used mainly to serve business needs, and has more security features. Now, since the Windows Service Pack upgrades are available for XP, downloading them makes your system still more secure. One of the features of XP Professional is EFS (Encrypted File System), which is available also in the lower version of Windows, Windows 2000, but ironically, Windows XP Home edition lacks this. The Simple File Sharing system in Windows XP Home, which doesn’t give you much choice on the individual files (like who can open it, and who can change or delete it), is an inadequate security feature. All these clearly point to the need of an upgrade.
2. Use a limited user account for general use: The Windows system gives you several user account types. They are Guest Account, Administrator Account, Limited Account, etc. Limited Account doesn’t have much privileges. It can alter neither the hardware configuration, nor the basic system configuration, but is perfect for a general use of the system. If you are a novice user, or are not in need of much system level tweaking, then you should use a limited user account, and reserve a password protected Administrator Account for advanced tasks.
3. Use a password on Guest Account: The Windows has a guest user account in place. This is for use by the guest users of the system, and is in effect a limited account. The Guest Account is by default disabled. However, you can enable it using the User Accounts module in Control Panel. If many people have to access your system, you should password-protect the Guest Account, so you can be sure that only the authorized people (whom you gave the password) use the system, and skittish kids or unpredictable lot do not access the system and play with your data.
However, keeping the Guest Account disabled will not help you in this regard. The Guest Account never gets actually disabled. The option “Turn off the Guest Account” will only turn off the direct Windows Login with it. But the account will be used, because XP uses it to grant access to the remote users to the shared system resources over a network. Therefore, you cannot fully withhold the effect of the Guest Account. However, Windows doesn’t allow you to choose a password for this account within the User Accounts tool. It should be done through the Command Line. Here is how:
Open the command line console (type “cmd” at Start->Run); type in this command in the console: “net user guest
4. Private Folders Protect User data: Windows XP has Simple File Sharing feature to share your files over a network. Windows XP Home doesn’t provide you a further customized file sharing, as does Windows 2000 or Windows XP Professional. In Windows XP Professional, you can customize the file sharing by unchecking “Use Simple File Sharing” in the Folder Options->View tab. The Folder Options resides in the Control Panel. In Windows XP Home, you can make a folder secure by making it private. View the folder properties; there is a tab, “Sharing and Security.” Here you have the option to make the folder private.
In Windows XP Professional, when you disable the Simple File Sharing, you can get advanced file sharing options. There will be a new tab, “Security” when you view the properties of a folder or file. In this, you can virtually choose which user can do what (read, write, modify, or delete) on the file.
5. Enable ICF: The Internet Connection Firewall (ICF), provided by both Home and Professional editions, is a built-in firewall application. You can enable the firewall for any network connection you make. This can be done from the properties of your new connection. Within the Advanced tab, you can turn on the Windows Firewall and the Internet Connection Sharing (ICS). However, you can leave them disabled, and install a third party antivirus and firewall application instead. Also, it is recommended to do so. Windows Firewall, though provided by Microsoft, is not an exhaustive firewall application. It is only better than nothing. Using a professional third party antivirus and security suite, on the other hand, you can get more extensive security to your system at a minimal cost.
It is difficult to achieve high security in Windows; however, the techniques discussed above and many other understood methods should make your system very secure. I needn’t instruct you not to open attachments from unknown emails, not to share important personal information, or regularly update your Antivirus and Firewall software.
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