Security in Windows XP

One of the biggest problems facing computer users has always been computer viruses, but in recent years spyware has also been added to them. For a home computer that does not have confidential information, this is not a big problem, but, still, it's not very pleasant when the information about the owner of the computer is transmitted somewhere without his knowledge.

From this article, you will learn how to improve the security of your computer so that you stop worrying about important data and do not allow anything to send information from your computer without your permission.

Over time, we will complement this article, so stay tuned. You can send useful information on this topic and your feedback.

Passwords

The first thing you should start with is passwords. Here are the registry keys associated with passwords. The main rule to follow, if you want your passwords to be effective - do not use words that can be found in the dictionary, or a set of numbers. It's best to combine numbers and letters in different registers and do not store your passwords in easily accessible places.

Prompt for password when returning to work from standby mode
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ Software \ Policies \ Microsoft \ Windows \ System \ Power]
"PromptPasswordOnResume" = '1'

Require passwords only from letters and numbers
This key will make you always combine letters and numbers in passwords.
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Policies \ Network] "AlphanumPwds" = '1'

Setting the minimum number of characters in passwords
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Policies \ Network]
"MinPwdLen" = hex: 6

Unregistering passwords in Internet Explorer
If you trust Microsoft to store passwords and other sensitive information, you can allow Windows to store an Internet access password on your computer's disk, but that's not a good idea.
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Internet Settings]
"DisablePasswordCaching" = '1'

Preventing the storage of passwords
In previous versions of Windows 9x, saving passwords was a big problem. Now this is not true, Windows 2000 and XP protect this information significantly better. But, again, it's up to you to let the operating system store passwords on disk or not. This applies to user passwords and network passwords.
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Policies \ Network]
"DisablePwdCaching" = '1'

Net

Deny access for anonymous users

An anonymous user can access the list of users and open resources to prevent this, you can use this key.
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Control \ LSA]
"RestrictAnonymous" = '1'

Do not show passwords when you type

When you try to access a password-protected resource, Windows does not hide the password that you enter. This key allows you to replace the password symbols with asterisks.
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Policies \ Network]
"HideSharePwds" = '1'

"Hide" the computer from other users on the network

This key allows you to enable a mode in which other users will not see your computer in network browsing mode.
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Services \ LanmanServer \ Parameters] "Hidden" = '1'

We remove traces of our work at the computer

Clear the PageFile file

Destruction at termination of all information that could be saved in the system file Page File.
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Control \ Session Manager \ Memory Management]
"ClearPageFileAtShutdown" = '1'

Automatic deletion of temporary files after working on the Internet

0 will cause Internet Explorer to delete all temporary files, such as images from web pages and other information left after working on the Internet, and 1 will allow these files to be left on the disk.
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Internet Settings \ Cache]
"Persistent" = '0'

Unsubscribe the list of documents that you worked with
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Policies \ Explorer]
"NoRecentDocsHistory" = '1'

Undo save information about user actions

This key forbids you to write down which applications the user recently worked with, and to which documents he accessed.
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Policies \ Explorer] "NoInstrumentation" = '1'

Batch file for removing temporary information

This batch file will delete all temporary information before shutting down the computer. To create it, you need to perform a few simple steps:

1. Open Notepad and enter this text: (do not forget to replace username with the user name you are logged into, and C: \ Temp - the name of your temporary files folder).

RD / S / q "C: \ Documents and Settings \ USERNAME \ Local Settings \ History"
RD / S / q "C: \ Documents and Settings \ Default User \ Local Settings \ History"
RD / S / q "C: \ Temp \"

2. Save this file on your C: drive under the name deltemp.bat.

3. Click Start-> Run. Enter gpedit.msc. In the left part of the Group Policy window, select Computer Configuration - Windows Settings - Scripts (Start / End) and select Shutdown on the right side of the window. In the window that appears, click the "Add" button and specify where the file you created is located. Now it will be started before each shutdown of the computer.

Naturally, only the main registry keys that relate to the security of your data and access to resources on your computer are described here. This material will be updated, so if the topic of security for you is relevant, stay tuned.