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Control Panel - Security
Microsoft has tried to group all the security related
functions for Vista into this one Control Panel category.
For the most part I think they have succeeded, at least for
the average user that pays little to no attention to
security issues unless there is a problem that impacts
system usage.
One of the common complaints about Control panel is you are
never sure where you will end up when clicking a link in
Control Panel. I'm not sure how Microsoft defines the
layout, but I define the primary headings such as Security
Center and Windows Firewall as 'Main Categories' and the
links under each main category as 'Category Links'.
Sometimes you'll be taken to what looks like another Main
Category window, other times a click will lead you to a
completely separate window opening up, so the consistency is
a bit shaky. The bottom line is, if you see a Category Link
that looks like it will do what you're trying to accomplish,
give it a try first. You can always come back to the Main
Categories. So, let's take a look at the Main Categories.
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Figure
01 |
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Security
Center
- Clicking on Security Center will open [no big surprise]
Windows Security Center. Microsoft has determined that
Firewall, Automatic Updating, Malware Protection, and Other
Security Settings are the four essentials you should be
concerned about on your system. Whether you agree with that
determination or not, those are the categories that are
displayed.
The section on the right of Security Center is nothing more
than a status monitor for the different categories. It does
tell you what applications are installed on the system if
you click the 'Show me' links while the 'How does' links
open to explanatory pages in Windows Help and Support. In
the left side panel of Windows Security Center there are
links to Windows Update, Windows Firewall, Windows Defender,
and Internet Options. These links are also available on the
main Control Panel > Security page, so where you click them
is a matter of choice. The redundancy factor. |
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Figure
02 |
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What 'is' available on this page alone, and I suspect will
be important to many users as they use Vista over time, is
the 'Change the Way Security Center Alerts Me' option. When
a security issue is noted and the system found to be at
risk, Security Center wants to alert you in the notification
area of the taskbar. The default notification consists of a
text balloon and an icon in the notification area. One step
down from that is just the icon without the text balloon.
The third choice is no notification at all. I don't
particularly mind the icon notification, but the text
warnings become very annoying. |
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Figure
03 |
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Finally, the link about the
latest security and virus information online takes you to
the
Microsoft Security Central
page. I've included the link to it in case you need to
research an issue. |
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Windows
Firewall
- Clicking the main Windows Firewall category in Control
Panel > Security brings you to this screen, another 'step'
in getting to a screen where you can actually do something
that impacts the system, with one notable exception. If you
click on the 'Update Settings Now' link in the pale yellow
caution area, rather than direct you to the Windows Firewall
Settings screen, it will automatically enable Windows
Firewall; no warning and no questions asked. If that's what
you want to do, it's fine, but for more control there are
other alternatives. |
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Figure
04 |
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Using the [Turn Windows Firewall On or Off], [Allow A
Program Through Windows Firewall], or the [Change Settings]
links will take you to one of the tabs in the Windows
Firewall Settings window shown below. |
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Figure
05 |
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Windows Update -
As expected this opens
Windows Update where you can manage how updates are handled
on the system as well as initiate the update process. There
are a number of links in the left pane for selection. Check
for Updates does exactly that; it checks for any new updates
without any further user input. Selecting Change Settings
allows you to control how Vista checks for and installs
updates as well allowing you to turn off updates completely.
View Update History and Restore Hidden Updates are the
lesser used options, but still handy if you need to go back
and check on an update. |
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Figure 06
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Windows
Defender
- Windows Defender is a spyware detection program supplied
with Vista. If you have it running, clicking the [Windows
Defender] link will bring up the program. If you click the
[Scan for Spyware ...] category link under the main
category, a spyware scan will be initiated immediately. |
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Figure 07 |
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Internet Options
- This is a strange one that sort of makes me shake my head
and ask where is the consistency. In all the Main Categories
up to this point, when they are clicked you get a dual pane
type window that has a number of helpful links in the left
hand pane. Yet for Internet Options, where there are any
number of extra links that could prove very useful to less
technical users, the Internet Properties window opens. Why
wasn't this given one of those splashy sub-category windows
like the others?
At any rate, clicking Internet Options in
Control Panel > Security opens Internet Properties to the
General tab. As for the Category Links, [Change Security
Settings] opens to the Security tab, [Delete Browsing
History and Cookies] opens to the General tab, and [Manage
Browser Add-Ons] will open to the Programs tab. I just find
it hard to believe there weren't any situations identified
that warranted any links to the Privacy and Content tabs. |
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Figure 08 |
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Parental Controls
- According to Windows Help and Support, Parental Controls
can be used "to help manage how your children use the
computer. For example, you can set limits on your children's
access to the web, the hours that they can log on to the
computer, and which games they can play and programs they
can run." That's all well and good and Parental Controls
does indeed allow that to be done. And in spite of the name
Parental Controls, I've actually seen quite a few small
businesses that lack the personnel and technical expertise
to lock down their office computers using Parental Controls.
I won't get into the dynamics of how children and employees
may react to being under the scrutiny of Parental Controls,
but it can be a very useful tool, especially the program
blocking and activity report capabilities. |
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Figure 09 |
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BitLocker Drive Encryption
- It's pretty much a given that everyone wants to keep their
system and data secure. Encryption has long been the
preferred method for data security and BitLocker is the
latest method to encrypt your hard drive. The Encrypting
File System (EFS) has been around for NTFS drives for quite
some time. BitLocker is different from EFS in that it uses a
TPM (Trusted Platform Module) hardware chip. Chances are
pretty good that your current system doesn't have a TPM
chip, and as you can see in the screen capture below the
system I'm using for this article falls into that category.
You can't just go out and buy a TPM chip. The system has to
be designed for it from the beginning.
So, does that mean if the TPM
chip is missing that BitLocker is out of the question on
your system? Actually, no, you can run BitLocker without
having a TPM chip by using a USB memory key or supplying a
password each time the system boots, but the boot files
integrity will not be assured as it is on TPM chip enabled
systems. Plus, if you manually supply the password, be
prepared for some heavy duty typing as we aren't talking
about a [myfavoritedessert] type password. Before BitLocker
can be enabled you need to prepare the drive. It requires at
least two volumes before BitLocker can be installed. Read
through the
Description of the BitLocker
Drive Preparation Tool
to see what is involved and make sure you can meet the
requirements.
One last thing I forgot to mention; BitLocker is only
available in Vista Ultimate and Enterprise editions.
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Figure
10
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Secure Online Key Backup
- Once you move into the world of file encryption, be it EFS
or BitLocker, you need to make damn sure you are able to get
to your files or drive. Without the BitLocker Recovery
Password or EFS Recovery Certificate, essentially you are
dead in the water, screwed, finished, kaput, or any other
term you choose. I'm not going to go through the whole
process here, but don't ignore this screen. Make backups of
your passwords and certificates. Make multiple backups - and
keep them safely stored away. They will be the only thing
that allows you to get to your data. If you're the type of
person that loses your car keys on a regular basis or has to
dig through a mountain of papers on your desk to find the
password you were 'absolutely sure you'd remember but now
you've lost or forgotten it', perhaps file encryption isn't
for you. You've been warned. |
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Figure
11
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[
Control Panel ] [
Control Panel -
Additional Options ] [
Control
Panel - Appearance and Personalization ]
[
Control Panel
- Clock, Language, and Region ] [
Control Panel - Ease of
Access ] [
Control Panel - Hardware and Sound ]
[
Control Panel - Mobile PC
] [ Control Panel
- Network and Internet ] [
Control Panel - Programs ]
[
Control Panel - Security ]
[ Control Panel
- System and Maintenance ] [Control
Panel - User Accounts and Family Safety ] |
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