1. 1 of 2 This document is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS DOCUMENT. © 2006 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Every company computer is a gateway to the corporate network. Employees must guard these gateways against those outside the network who might try to gain access to corporate resources. By following the best practices in this guide, you can help protect against potential internal and external threats. Install Updates Immediately Keep your software up-to-date at home and at the office. Microsoft® Windows® Automatic Updates are recommended as a way of ensuring you always have the latest critical updates. To use Automatic Updates, click Start>Control Panel>System. On the Automatic Updates tab, click Automatic (recommended) and then choose an install time and frequency. Use Strong Passwords Choose a password that’s easy for you to remember but hard for others to guess. Strong password requirements include the following: are at least eight characters long; use both upper and lower case characters, digits, and punctuation marks; do not contain actual words in any language, slang, dialect, or jargon; and are not based on personal or family names. Add a Password to Your Screen Saver Use your Windows password in combination with your screen saver to prevent access to your computer when you are away. Set the screen saver to appear no more than 15 minutes after your last activity. Click Start>Control Panel>Display, click the Screen Saver tab, and then select the On resume, password protect check box. Lock Your Computer When You’re Away Whenever you step away from your computer, press CTRL+ALT+DEL and then click Lock Computer. (Or press Windows logo key+L.) This locks your computer and prevents anyone without your password from gaining access to the system. Use Antivirus and AntiSpyware Software Install antivirus software on your computer, download the latest signature file, and immediately perform a complete scan of all files. After ensuring your system is clean, configure the antivirus program to scan all incoming and outgoing files in real-time. Download virus signatures frequently, and if you deactivate the program for any length of time, perform a full-system scan on restarting. Protect your computer from spyware and other harmful software—download and install a spyware scanner here: http://www.microsoft.com/spywarehttp://www.microsoft.com/spyware Note To check for non-critical updates for Windows, go to http://windowsupdate.microso ft.com. If you have Microsoft Office, you will need to go to http://office.microsoft.com to check for updates. http://windowsupdate.microso ft.com http://office.microsoft.com

2. 2 of 2 This document is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS DOCUMENT. © 2006 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Check your System for Weaknesses Use the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer (MBSA) to measure how secure your system is. The MBSA is a vulnerability assessment tool for Microsoft Windows that scans your system and provides a list of recommendations to improve security. You can download the MBSA free of charge at http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/tools/mbsahome.mspx. http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/tools/mbsahome.mspx Install Only From Trusted Sources Do not install programs from the Internet unless you are familiar with their sources. This includes freeware and shareware, which are at high risk for containing malicious code. Installing software from untrusted sources can compromise your system and put other computers on the corporate network at risk. Encrypt Files and Folders If you have highly sensitive personally identifiable information (PII) or highly sensitive business information on your computer, encrypt it using Encrypting File System (EFS). Dedicate a separate folder for encrypted content and name it something like “Secure.” This way, when you encrypt the folder, you can ensure that all files and subfolders within that folder are automatically encrypted too. To encrypt a folder and its contents: right-click the folder you wish to encrypt and click Properties. On the General tab, click Advanced. In the Advanced Attributes dialog box, select Encrypt contents to secure data. When prompted, select the option to encrypt all files and subfolders within the folder. To decrypt the folder, click to clear the Encrypt contents to secure data check box. Use Windows XP Professional at Work and Home Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 2 (SP2) is recommended for use both at work and at home due to its improved security features, including the Windows Firewall and encryption for files and personal documents. Protect your Documents with Passwords To protect a Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, or Microsoft PowerPoint® file with a password, within the file click Tools>Options, click the Security tab, and in the Password to open box, enter the password you want to assign. This ensures that only a person with the password will be able to open the file. Note If you plan to share the Word document or Excel file, select the Read-only recommended check box for the highest level of security. This option is not available in PowerPoint.