How to Disable Norton in Windows ?

Norton Internet Security and Norton Personal Firewall provide protection against malicious probes and malicious software (malware) infections on your Windows PC. Norton is a commercial product and requires annual subscriptions to maintain virus definitions and product upgrades. You may decide to try other brands of Internet security software or may need to disable Norton Internet Security to improve performance when gaming or to install other software products. Regardless of your reasons, disabling Norton in Windows takes less than five minutes.

Instructions

Disable Norton Internet Security

Click on "Start." Find "Norton Internet Security" in your programs list and click to open it.


Click on "User Accounts" in the left column. Check your account name to make sure you're logged on as Supervisor.

If you are not logged on as Supervisor, click "Log off." Click "Yes," then select "Log on." Select "Supervisor," enter your password, and click "OK." You can leave the password field blank if a password has not yet been set for the Supervisor account.

Click on "Status and Settings" in the left column.

Click "Security." Select "Turn off."

Read more http://goo.gl/FCe3g

Windows 7 Operating System Security

An operating system is always developed keeping in mind the advantages and disadvantages of the microprocessors of that time. The hardware should always be at par with the software and vice versa. I am actually trying to point at the 64 bit implementation of the Windows 7 on Intel Core vPro processors. Windows 7 has gone through a Security Development Life Cycle or SDL in which technical aspects were taken into account. To get assistance on computer security, consult a tech support expert. Let us discuss the outcome and implementation of it as seen in the operating system.

1) Data Execution Prevention or the DEP feature of the OS executes the ED it or the Execute disable bit in Intel Processors against computer viruses that uses the buffer-flow technique for corrupting the computer.

2) Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR) is another worry factor for those hackers who target specific memory address locations. Imagine that the critical areas of your hard drive where data and other system files reside are being hacked to the level of specific addresses but if the address locations are randomized then no matter where the data resides, it will be difficult for any malicious code to detect it and bring harm to the computer. Cool idea isn't it?

3) Safe Structured Exception Handling. What is that? Well, an exception is a situation which is other than natural and needs to be taken care in a specific manner. This, in programmed structures are done in a specific way so that subroutines are robust enough when due to a virus infection or system file corruption an unwanted situation arise in a computer.

4) Do not forget the Kerberos v5 a protocol for encryption that is used to send passwords over the internet. The question is why should we do so? The answer is that even when you are logging into a website you need to put a password which is again using the internet as the carrier.

5) There are a number of tools which enables us to look after the health of the operating system like the Event Viewer and the UAC (User Account Control) which gives you the required security and at the same time better tools to dive into the changes that went on in the recent past and created the problem you are facing now with the computer.

All said and done, the question still arises as to why do we still get virus infections in our computer? The answer is that no machine in this world is fully perfect and the war between the good and the bad continues no matter whether one wins the temporary game against the other or not. The malicious-code writers are still there. Consult a good technician for total PC maintenance and virus removal. It is not always the branded antivirus software that can give you total security form malicious code. The wireless connectivity between your router and the computer, encrypting your mails, configuring your antivirus cum firewall are some simple ways that actually serves your purpose.


Source : http://goo.gl/AOlir

Windows 7 Security Feature

Microsoft Windows 7 has seen users reporting various security level norms and problems that are undergoing within their operating system. Microsoft has sought out the solution by providing users with free security solutions to Windows 7 users, but then too it was neglected by many revenue companies towards the solution.

According the problem, users always seems to see their security related problems first, in such regard Microsoft team offered Windows Update feature in their Windows 7 operating system which can detect the presence of Windows 7 Antivirus solutions into their operating system. In a survey, it was seen that many had reported with no Windows 7 Antivirus solution uploaded in their system. Therefore, Microsoft sought to offer free Antivirus software to Windows 7 users which is the Microsoft Security Essentials(MSE) software feature. However this brought about a fight in antivirus software sites which started revolting against the announcement of Microsoft to provide free antivirus software at no cost of money.

There were totally many issues raised up in the regard. The Antivirus software companies reported that there is no dependence that users can be with downloading the free Microsoft Security Essentials(MSE) from the feature of Windows 7 updates. It shouldn't be implied as a way of distributing softwares within the operating system as it might get spammed. The companies feel that Microsoft should close up with this feature and allow the Windows 7 Antivirus softwares to come up legally with advanced operating mode to Windows 7 users.

Source mywindowsclub

How to use VPN Reconnect

Roaming users generally rely on VPNs (virtual private networks) to provide a secure connection between their computer and the internal company network. You don’t have to know how it works, but it’s the magic technology that convinces IT managers to say yes to working from outside the office.

When you’re sitting in a hotel room, at a customer’s office or in your own study, and you establish a VPN connection, your PC will generally stay logged on without any problems. However, when you’re relying on a Wi-Fi hotspot or mobile broadband dongle to establish a VPN connection while on the move, you may suffer frequent dropped connections and a cumbersome process for re-authenticating and re-establishing the VPN connection each time.

The VPN Reconnect feature allows Windows 7 to automatically re-establish active VPN connections after Internet connectivity is interrupted. As soon as Windows 7 reconnects to the internet, it will also reconnect to the VPN.

Inevitably, the VPN will still be ­unavailable as long as the internet connection is down, and the process of reconnecting will take a few seconds after access becomes available again, but VPN Reconnect at least ensures that your ­network resources will pop back up as soon as possible, without you ­having to fiddle around with anything.

We promised you some technical details, so: VPN Reconnect is basically an IPsec tunnel using the IKEv2 (Internet Key Exchange) protocol for key negotiation and for transmission of ESP (Encapsulating Security Payload) packets. ESP is part of the industry standard IPsec security architecture, which provides confidentiality, authentication of data origin and connectionless integrity.

In plain English: the system knows where data is coming from and that it hasn’t been seen or modified on the way.

Why all this fuss just to maintain your connection? Well, it’s a trickier job than it might seem. For example, when viewing streaming video over a VPN connection while you’re on a train, you would typically lose all buffered data and have to start the video again every time the connection went down.

The features of the IKEv2 IPSec tunnel and ESP help to ensure a persistent connection, despite wrinkles like the IP address changing during the reconnection (as it well might when you’re connecting to someone else’s server, such as a Wi-Fi hotspot or mobile phone network), and allow the streaming video to resume from the point it was at when VPN connectivity was lost.

Source pcadvisor

Windows 7 security defeated by 8 out of 10 malware applications

Leading up to its release, there was a lot of concern regarding Window 7's default User Account Control (UAC) settings. Namely: it doesn't actually provide any damn security. Alas.

Basically, Microsoft went ahead and reacted to the public outcry regarding the Vista security confirmations. I think we can all agree that they were really annoying (and most power-users turn UAC off because of how irritating they are). As a result, there are significantly fewer UAC warnings in a default Windows 7 installation -- hooray! The problem is that the new default setting in Windows 7 leads you to falsely believe that you have a secure installation right out of the box. Sadly, this is not the case.

It's no surprise then that 8 out of 10 malware Applications defeated the default Windows 7 UAC setting in tests.

So practice safe surfing (duh!) or go and hoik your UAC settings up to the most secure -- and annoying -- setting. Ars Technica has a great guide on patching up your UAC for new Windows 7 users -- or even an experienced user like myself that falsely believed the default setting to be secure.

Source:-downloadsquad.switched.com

Windows 7 Security: 5 Simple Ways to Stay Safer

Is your Windows 7 PC as secure as it could be?

It's often too easy for you busy laptop warriors to assume your Windows PCs are safe. A computer virus? That's not going to happen to me ... until it does.

So in addition to running a full antivirus software suite, either free and good enough (Avast, Microsoft Security Essentials) or paid and Teflon strong (Symantec Norton, Kaspersky), you should also take advantage of Windows 7's built-in security settings and updates.

These five simple security features in Windows 7 help keep the bad guys at bay.

Action Center

Action Center, the home base for your PC's security, lists all information about security settings. The main role of Action Center is to consistently check on security items such as your network firewall and maintenance items including backup and restore, to make sure your machine is healthy.

The Action Center in Windows 7 gives you a view of all your PC's security and maintenance features.

Action Center shows up as a little white flag on the right-hand side of the Windows 7 toolbar, or it can be reached by the path Control Panel -- System and Security -- Action Center.

Inside Action Center, you can make sure your Windows Firewall is on, your antivirus software is up to date and that your PC is set to install updates automatically.

When the status of a monitored security item changes, such as your antivirus becoming out of date, Action Center notifies you with a message in the taskbar. Then when you open Action Center, the status of the item in question changes color to indicate the severity of the problem, and an action is requested.

[ For complete coverage on Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system -- including hands-on reviews, video tutorials and advice on enterprise rollouts -- see CIO.com's Windows 7 Bible. ]

Action Center is a helpful resource that warns you when there may be trouble. Be sure not to neglect those Action Center messages when they turn up.

Windows Defender

Windows Defender, antispyware software that's included with Windows 7, runs automatically when it is turned on.

Spyware is any unwanted or potentially harmful software that can be installed on your computer without your knowledge any time you connect to the Internet. It can also infect your computer when you install programs using a CD or DVD.

Windows Defender staves off spyware in two ways:

* Real-time protection. Windows Defender alerts you when spyware attempts to install itself or to run on your computer. It also alerts you when programs attempt to change important Windows settings.
* Scanning options. You can use Windows Defender to scan for spyware that might be installed on your computer, to schedule scans on a regular basis, and to automatically remove anything that's detected during a scan.

To open Windows Defender, click the Start button located in the far left of the task bar. In the search box, type Defender, and then, in the list of results, click Windows Defender.

User Account Control

UAC, the security feature that prompts you for permission to install or open programs, was despised by Windows Vista users, but it is much more customizable in Windows 7. The options are no longer "on or off"; there are four notification levels that a user can set.

The four settings in Windows 7 UAC's customizable slider range from Always notify to Never notify.

The improved Windows 7 UAC is essential in that it informs you when a program makes a change that could potentially harm your computer or make it susceptible to security threats.

If you are your computer's administrator (in most cases you are), you can click Yes to continue. If you are not an administrator, someone with an administrator account on the computer will have to enter their password for you to continue.

When your permission is needed to open a program or install software, UAC will notify you with one of four different types of dialog boxes:

* When a program or setting is part of Windows and needs your permission to start.
* When a program is not a part of Windows and needs your permission to start
* When a program with an unknown publisher needs your permission to start
* When you have been blocked by your system administrator from running a program because the program is known to be untrusted

To modify User Account Control Settings, click the Start button and then click Control Panel. In the search box, type uac, and then click Change User Account Control Settings.

Windows Update

Windows Update can be a pest, especially when updates pop up when you're in the middle of 10 things. But by installing the latest updates as they become available for your PC, you are continually improving the security, reliability and performance of your computer without too much of an inconvenience.

Slideshow: Windows 7 Hardware in Pictures: The Latest and Greatest Laptops Slideshow: Seven Features in Windows 7 You Probably Don't Know About Slideshow: Seven Tools to Ease Your Windows 7 Rollout

You can set Windows to automatically install "important" and "recommended" updates or to install important updates only. Important updates are for more critical security and reliability issues and recommended updates address noncritical problems.

To turn on automatic Windows Updates:

* Click on the Start button. In the search box type Update, and then in the list of results click Windows Update.
* In the left pane, click Change Settings.
* Under Important updates, you can choose if you want to install new updates automatically, and the day and time you want the latest updates to take place (i.e. Every Day at 6 am).
* Under Recommended Updates select the "Give me recommended updates the same way I receive important updates" check box, and then click OK.

Windows Firewall

Windows Firewall is an easy feature to turn on or off and can help prevent hackers and worms from slithering into your computer through a network or the Internet. A firewall can also help stop your computer from sending malicious software to other computers.

Unless you have another firewall enabled, such as a corporate network firewall, you should turn on Windows Firewall to protect your computer and network (if you have one).

To turn on Windows Firewall:

* Click the Start button, and then click Control Panel. In the search box, type firewall, and then click Windows Firewall.
* In the left pane, click "Turn Windows Firewall on or off." If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
* Click Turn on Windows Firewall under each network location that you want to help protect, and then click OK.

Note: If your computer is connected to a corporate network, your company's group policy settings might prevent you from turning on Windows Firewall.

Source networkworld