Overlooked Features of Windows Security
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The slumping economy and ultra-competitive business world has forced large corporations and small companies alike to cut every cost that can be considered “unnecessary,” but many major companies have failed to make adjustments at even the most basic level: their software. Many companies use Windows security and thanks to two major consultancy firms, it has recently come to light that some of the software’s most overlooked features could help save money. Keep reading for the details.
IT security consultancy firmComsecand training consultancy firmXTSeminarslaunched a new advisory paper on April 16, 2009, which outlined the five key areas that companies are overlooking when securing their Windows environments. So, how exactly can Windows security be utilized to save money? Let's find out.
Enhancing Five Key Areas of Window Security
The paper, which is entitled"Enhancing Five Key Areas of Windows Security,"has one major goal: to help organizations bolster security without having to spend any additional money. Though the information for the report was compiled by both Comsec and XTSeminars consultancy firms, the bulk of it was written by XTSeminars' very own John Craddock, who is no stranger to Microsoft-related subjects.
Craddock has designed and implemented computing systems ranging from high-speed industrial controllers to IT systems with a focus on security and high availability. He has routinely been a key player in many IT projects for countless industry leaders, including Microsoft. Not only that, but Craddock has written many in-depth technical training courses and is the co-author of a highly-successful book onMicrosoft Active Directory Internals. All of this is just to say that the man obviously knows what he's talking about, which is why companies looking to save money should take the advice outlined in the report quite seriously.
One of the strategies outlined in the document -- all of which we'll discuss in a moment -- is to improve authentication by substituting easy-to-guess passwords with "pass phrases," which are generally easier to remember and harder to break. The paper also examines how organizations can use Microsoft Windows Server Update Services to deploy security updates as well as how to use the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer to check for successful deployments.
Comsec UK's general manager, Stuart Okin, was previously Microsoft UK's chief security adviser, and he believes that companies have a lot to learn when it comes to making the most of software and cutting costs. "A lot of people spend so much on patch management solutions, which is unnecessary because there is so much out there that's free these days," Okin said.
Next: Key Area No. 1: Password Strength >>
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