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BOOT CAMP 244 (24/09/02)
Protecting your PC, part 2
There’s a lot you can do to protect your PC from external and
unpredictable threats, such as surges in the mains electricity supply and
lightning strikes – see last week’s Boot Camp -- but what can you do to shield
it from attack -- deliberate and accidental -- by human assailants?
Break-ins and theft of computer equipment is a major problem
costing UK firms hundreds of millions of pounds a year. PCs kept on commercial
premises that are often unoccupied at night or at weekends are particularly
vulnerable. In truth your PC is at risk wherever it is kept so it is wise to
take some basic anti-theft measures, even in the home. At the very least you
should mark all of your equipment with your postcode, either indelibly in a
concealed location or by using a ultra-violet marker pen. It won’t stop anything
from being stolen but it might make it easier to identify your property if it is
later recovered.
Various products are available, mostly mechanical in nature,
designed to prevent the system unit and expensive peripherals being removed from
the premises. These include brackets and restraints that fix the case to a desk,
office furniture or the floor and security cupboards and ‘cages’. There are also
devices and attachments for locking the disc drives and securing the case or
side panels. It’s worth remembering that the latest processor chips and memory
boards are actually worth considerably more than their weight in gold!
Various electronic cards and modules are also available that
fit inside the case, these include tags and trackers, trembler alarms that sound
if the computer is moved and sensors that react if the PC is disconnected from
the mains supply. Needless to say leaving a laptop lying around and in view is
just asking for trouble – lock it up or loose it!
Most computer dealers stock a range of security products
suitable for single desktop machines in a domestic or SoHo environment; if you
are responsible for a significant amount of computer hardware or a network it’s
wise to seek expert advice.
If your PC is readily accessible to others and it contains
sensitive information, or you simply do not want anyone messing around or using
it without your permission then the very first thing you should do is protect
the files and data it contains with a PIN or password lock of some sort.
The security features in Windows 9x (95, 98, ME & SE) are
notoriously weak and really only designed to identify users so don’t even think
of using them, unless you only need to protect your PC against 5-year olds (and
even that’s debatable, given the computer savvy of many kids these days…).
Windows XP is a lot better (see http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/security/
) but it’s worth knowing that once a PC has booted up, even if it’s only to a
password request dialogue box, the data it contains can be vulnerable to
determined attack.
Most PCs and laptops have a good first-level security feature
built-in to their BIOS software. This is the small program that runs immediately
after switch-on, testing and configuring the computer hardware prior to loading
Windows. When the BIOS password facility is enabled the boot process will not
start until the correct PIN is entered.
Accessing the BIOS program to set up the password facility
involves pressing a key, or sequence of keys immediately after the computer is
switched on, you should consult your manual for details. The BIOS program
usually displays a simple menu with a security or password option. Once set a
PIN entry dialogue box will appear on the screen as soon as the PC is switched
on. The BIOS password facility is very powerful so make sure you remember it, or
keep a note of it in a safe place.
If you are not comfortable about making changes to your PC’s
BIOS – and it’s not something novices should try -- and you only require
low-level protection against those pesky five year olds, or for when your PC is
unattended then the simplest option is to password protect a screensaver. To
switch this facility on right-click on an empty area of the desktop and select
Properties, (or double-click the Display icon in Control Panel) and select the
Screensaver tab; you’ll find the password option under the screensaver name
box.
Varying degrees of protection can be provided by third-part
software utilities, which either prevent Windows from loading or deny access to
files and folders and programs without an appropriate password or PIN. There are
plenty to choose from, including lots of commercial applications but if you are
still evaluating your security needs you might want to have a look at some of
the freeware titles available (see below), or search for shareware programs with
Google (www.google.com), using keywords
such as ‘Windows Security’ and ‘Password Protection’.
Protector Win: http://www.home.acenet.net.au/grahampe/
WinSafe: http://www.ruzzy.co.uk/winsafe.html
Locker: http://www.geocities.com/simpleapps/
Black Screen: http://www.rjlsoftware.com/software/security/black/
Next week – Alternative Internet and email programs
JARGON FILTER
BIOS
Basic
Input Output System, a program stored in a microchip memory on the PC
motherboard that checks and configures the hardware, memory and disc drives,
before the operating system is loaded
SOHO
Small
Office, Home Office, also a category of PC peripherals and office equipment
designed for light to medium workloads
TAGS AND TRACKERS
Family of anti-theft products, ranging in complexity from
passive security ‘tags’ – similar to those used to protect goods in shops – to
active location beacons, using cellular phone technology and automatic Internet
reporting systems that are enabled as soon as the stolen PC is connected to a
telephone line
TOP TIP
This tip is an extension of one we published last week, to
quickly open a blank email message window, without launching Outlook Express. To
recap, simply right-click on any desktop icon, select Send To > Mail
Recipient and delete the entries in the Subject and Attach boxes and the message
area and it’s ready to go. To make it even more accessible go to Save As on your
newly created blank message window’s File menu, call it Blank, or something
similar and Save it on the Desktop. Now you can drag and drop the little
envelope icon onto the Quick Start toolbar (next to the Start button) and a
blank message window is never more than a single mouse click away.
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