Windows7How

Windows 7 – Security Updates Inside

October 22, 2009

With previous versions of Windows, Microsoft commonly updates security with every new version release. They are also well-known for providing constant security patches after an operating system (OS) is available for sale and use. Of course, this is very much necessary in a world where new viruses and other security hazards come along each and every day. For Windows 7, Microsoft has updated the security contained within windows in several important areas.

One of the biggest changes is the new Action Center. This replaces Vista’s Security Center, which was also located in Control Panel. From the Action Center, you can set security options, Recovery options, Troubleshooting and Diagnostics, as well as Windows Update. That’s a handy centralization of several important tasks.

With Windows Vista, Microsoft included something called User Account Control (UAC). The problem with this was that all users were treated as standard users – even administrators. So, if an administrator needed to make a change to the OS, Vista would ask and ask and ask to make sure you had the authority to do it – it was a very real annoyance. In Windows 7, the UAC still exists but it is manageable. Within the Action Center, it can be configured to any of four settings to change how and when it asks for authorization. Simplification is nice.

Windows 7 has also improved BitLocker from what was offered in Vista. With the older version, you were eventually allowed to encrypt all hard drives on your system, but you still had no way to encrypt external USB drives – the holder of your data which was most likely to be lost or stolen. Windows 7 allows removable drives to be encrypted now, thankfully. All you have to do is have the drive connected, go into Control Panel, select the drive you wish to encrypt and select ‘Turn on BitLocker.’ More security is always better when it comes to your valuable data.

DirectAccess is a new feature in the latest Windows. It allows a user to securely connect to a corporate or business network through the Internet without the need for VPN. This also allows for multiple factors of authentication – i.e. smart cards.

Biometric security has also been simplified in Windows 7. With Windows Vista, a third-party driver had to be installed to use a fingerprint reader for authentication. In Windows 7, you have the driver built right into the OS. However, it only supports fingerprint readers at present.

From Windows XP and Vista, we have an updated version of Software Restriction Policies for Windows 7. In those previous releases, it was possible to set up Group policies which would not allow software to be installed or run if it is considered a security threat. The problem was that it was tough to configure and not many people used it. With Windows 7, though, we have a new way to handle this in AppLocker. It is much easier to use for administrators and it can be configured through Group policies or on the local machine with the Local Security Policy. Software Restriction Policies can still be used with Windows 7, so if you already use it there will be no issue when upgrading your OS.

Windows Filtering Platform, introduced in Vista, is also available in Windows 7. It allows developers to build in access to the Windows Firewall into their own applications. Flexibility with security is always useful.

Scripting security and Group Policy will be easier in Windows 7 too! PowerShell v2 allows administrators to use any number of one-line scripts to make such changes. With scripting, an administrator can make small changes without having to dig through screens on a GUI. Additionally, Windows 7 provides a graphical way to create and keep track of these one-liners in something they call PowerShell Integrated Scripting Environment.

Windows 7 also supports DNSSec which is a set of extensions to the DNS platform that allows higher security to be integrated. That way a user can be sure that the data they receive is from a trusted source.

And, finally, Internet Explorer 8 will be shipped with Windows 7 and there are many security improvements to the Microsoft browser. The changes are numerous, but it is safe to say that it is greatly improved over IE 7 and you will gain a great deal of safety when using this browser over its previous release. Safer Internet browsing is something all users will find beneficial.

After what we have seen here, it is obvious that Microsoft has been working on improving the necessary security features which ship with their operating systems. They have made the security more centralized, easier to integrate with, simple to manage, and stronger for the environment in which we live these days. It’s about time that we have an OS with security like Windows 7.

Filed under: Uncategorized

Tags: AppLocker, Biometric, BitLocker, control panel, Diagnostics, DirectAccess, encrypt, fingerprint reader, ie8, Internet Explorer 8, patches, PowerShell, Recovery, security, Troubleshooting, uac, USB, User Account Control, Windows Filtering, Windows Firewall, Windows Update