An Overview on Authentication and Smart Cards Administrators have to secure the network from attacks launched by hackers, spies, terrorists, thieves and criminals. Security encompasses numerous technologies, protocols, standards, policies, passwords, and secret keys. All these mechanisms typically focus on the following: Authentication Access Control Data Protection Auditing/Accountability Authentication is the process by which an …
Understanding Security Policy Types With Windows Server 2003, you can implement and manage security settings at the following levels: Local computer (local security policies) Active Directory site, domain, or organizational unit (domain security policies) Local security policies are managed through Local Computer Group Policy Objects (GPOs), and domain security policies are managed through Group Policy …
User accounts allow Microsoft Windows to differentiate between computer users in order to determine the rights they should have. Each user account is assigned its own location on the hard disk for file storage. There is a collection of settings pertaining to each account that is stored in the computer’s Registry. Methods for Limiting a …
The Microsoft Windows operating system (OS) is one of the most popular OSs in the world. Although the company releases a new OS every three to four years (sometimes a bit faster), there are a number of common tasks that extend across software versions; albeit, the specific steps required to accomplish the task may differ …
Wireless Network Security Threats Wireless networks do not have the inbuilt physical security of wired networks, and are unfortunately more prone to attacks from intruders. Once unauthorized access is gained to the wireless network, the intruder would be able to easily access the resources of the corporate, internal network. To complicate matters, there are numerous …
Security Templates Review A security template is collection of security configuration settings that can be applied to a domain controller, member server or a workstation. The settings within a security template control the security configuration of a computer through both local policies and group policies. A security template can be applied to a local computer, …
In Windows Vista, there is a difference between accounts with “computer administrator” privileges and the Administrator account. In the Administrator account, the User Account Control is disabled. Also, the Administrator account is present, but hidden and disabled by default. Please be aware that Vista Beta 2 has a bug that may cause big problems, if …
An Overview of Auditing Auditing enables you to determine which activities are occurring on your system. Through auditing, you can track access to objects, files and folders; as well as any modifications made to the objects, files and folders. Auditing therefore enables you to collect information associated with resource access and usage on your system …
With Windows NT 4.0, came the launch of the System Policy Editor feature which enabled administrators to manage the security settings of the system through a single user interface. The System Policy Editor feature allowed administrators to easily manage configurations of multiple computers because configuration settings could be copied between systems. With the introduction of …
Domain Controllers Security Issues When it comes to Windows Server Active Directory networks, one of the most important server roles which can be configured is probably the domain controllers role. Domain controllers perform a number of important functions and control activities within a domain, including the following: Contain a replica of the Active Directory directory …