windows
Security attacks are becoming more complex and sophisticated these days. Attackers are using modern tools in attacking computers and servers all around the world in fast speed.
Increasingly, businesses use computers to process and store tons of data everyday. The unwanted disruption or destruction of data can cause some businesses millions of dollars in lost revenue.
As the most widely used operating systems for servers provider in the World, Microsoft’s systems have been subject to all kinds of attack from hackers, crackers, malicious software and so on. They are one of the most vulnerable operating systems used at home and commercially.
- Updates. First and foremost, the operating system itself needs frequent update. Windows Update is a service provided by Microsoft for users of Microsoft Windows which provides updates for the operating system and its installed components. Security updates are delivered by the Windows Update service on regular basis to prevent an exploit targeting Windows users. Windows Update can be configured to automatically install updates, ensuring that a computer is always up-to-date and not vulnerable to computer worms and other such malware. It is recommended to set it on automatic update option ‘download the updates automatically and notify me when they are ready to be installed’ to prevent the server from rebooting automatically without informing the users of the action. There are patches, updates, tools, hot fixes, and service packs available from Microsoft’s website.
- Firewall. Ensure that the Windows firewall is turned on. This is for basic security protection against intruders. To further safe guard the system from intrusion, the Windows defender and/or third party software like Zone Alarm should be installed. The Zone Alarm is the application based firewall program readily available from the Internet (www.zonealarm.com). Security can be set on each program. This is absolutely essential to prevent hackers and other threats from accessing the computer via open ports.
- Malicious codes. The most common threat are viruses, trojan horses, worms, time bombs, and backdoors. Systems using the Internet and emailing must get anti-virus, anti-spam, and anti-spyware software installed. Like the Windows operating system, they should all be updated regularly. Files and programs should be scanned, especially from unknown resources before putting on the network, and the server should be scanned on regular basis.
