Let Your PC Protect Itself

PC security generally works best when you don't have to think about every day. Windows^® 7 Professional is designed to let your PC take care of much of its own security automatically, relieving you of maintenance and security chores so you can concentrate on your work. Here are just three of the many ways that Windows 7 Professional protects itself:

• Avoid patchwork patching. When Charles Tholen, chief technology officer for Cognoscape, a consulting firm in Addison, Texas, does network assessments for clients, he finds the two most common security issues are missing security patches followed by outdated or no virus protection. Windows 7 Professional can automatically check for security and other updates when you go online and then install the updates automatically. "This stuff is analogous to changing the oil in your car," Tholen says. "You can go a long way without changing your oil, but eventually you'll throw the rods in your engine. And, in the same way, if you don't take care of updates, you'll eventually surf to the wrong web site and be compromised with malware."
• Reduce malware. The User Account Control (UAC), which helps prevent malicious software (malware) and spyware from installing on or making changes to your computer without permission, was a key element in reducing malware infections by 60% compared to UAC-less Windows XP with Service Pack 2.In Windows 7 Professional, UAC has been streamlined to give you security while minimizing the number of notifications you have to deal with. The system also includes a slider bar that gives you control over notification, with four settings ranging from "Always Notify" to "Never Notify," depending on how much guidance you want from the systemWindows. As Opher Lichter, IT director at Wunderman, a global network of advertising and marketing companies, puts it, "User Account Control prompts users when they try to do something that's potentially dangerous and serves as a ‘sanity check,' enabling them to stop and think first."
• Hide your tracks. Internet Explorer 8 works in tandem with Windows 7 Professional to make web browsing more secure. The InPrivate Browsing feature helps protect data and privacy by preventing your browsing history, temporary Internet files, form data, cookies, and usernames/passwords from being stored or retained locally by the browser, leaving virtually no evidence of your browsing or search history. The SmartScreen Filter helps thwart fraudulent websites that try to trick you into divulging private information or send malware to your PC.

  "SmartScreen Filter and Data Execution Prevention (another Internet Explorer 8 security feature that prevents cyber miscreants from executing files on your PC) are also improving security and are another reason why the number of help-desk calls and system reimages is down," Licher says.