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Modern Windows systems–those that employ an NTFS file system–allow system administrators to exercise a great deal of control over which applications can be executed and which cannot. This ability is an obvious security safeguard, since users won't be able to run programs that aren't known to be safe on the system. Unfortunately, though, there are still devices out there that don't use the NTFS system: floppies, CD-ROM drives, as well as drives that may be available across your network.

Trust-No-Exe is a security tool that allows you to specify which applications are safe to run and which are not. By specifying locations (the Windows directory, Program Files) where applications can be run or even the names of which apps can or cannot be executed, administrators can greatly tighten down the security on the systems for which they bear responsibility. Trust-No-Exe recognizes all types of executable files, not only .exe program files, but even the older .com programs, as well as .dll files, screen savers, and all other type of executables. This means that your network won't become vulnerable to accidental (or intentional) compromises of security just because somebody tried to open that malware-carrying birthday card the received via email, or to losses of productivity because of new games being fun from CD-ROM drives.

Trust-No-Exe is a free Windows app that will run on systems that support the NTFS file system–NT, 2K, XP, etc.

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Can you ever be too secure? Everything's got a password. Hardware and software firewalls are everywhere. Systems log you out after inactivity. How about adding file encryption to your arsenal?

Encryption tools have always been complicated beasts that made it difficult to secure your files. Complicated setups and configurations make them impractical for many users. AxCrypt is an encryption tool that integrates with Windows Explorer, so encrypting files is as easy as right clicking and choosing to encrypt or decrypt the file. AxCrypt uses 128-bit encryption, so your private data really is private. Users can also encrypt to a self-decrypting .exe program file. This lets you send an encrypted file to another user who doesn't even have AxCrypt on their system. You can also rename your encrypted file, since some filenames say it all–LetterOfResignation.doc, for example. You don't want that one out floating around!

Along with the default encrypt and decrypt version of the application, there is a decrypt only version for folks who need to use but not create encrypted files.

AxCrypt runs on Windows systems, anywhere from Win98 up to at least WinXP or later.

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Most antivirus tools depending on somebody's having seen a given virus before they can protect you. You've seen that you need to regularly update your virus databases to protect you from newly-discovered threats out there. Each of these updated depends on somebody's system having been infected. While protecting you from yesterday's nasties is a good thing, what about the new stuff that happens today? You don't want to be the guy (or gal) who prompts the latest update.

So-called "zero day" exploits are of concern to us all. Rather than depending on a recognizable signature of already-identified threats, ThreatFire (formerly CyberHawk) looks at behavior to recognize and isolate the bad stuff and keep it from messing you up. Keystroke records, spyware, rootkits–they're all fair game for ThreatFire.

By combining a tool like ThreatFire with the antivirus software you're already using, you can sleep just a little easier at night, knowing that your system is that much more protected against what the Internet can throw at it.

ThreatFire is a Windows app and requires Windows 2000 or later.

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Returnil is an interesting app that protects your system from virtually everything. When you start it up, it reads your entire system partition into memory, and then uses this virtual system for your session. This means that no matter what changes get made to your system, all you need to do to roll them back is to restart your machine. You can hang-out in dangerous neighborhoods online–or even let your overly inquisitive nephew onto your system–with no fear of things getting mucked up. Whatever changes are made, intentionally or not, to your system are strictly temporary.

Upgrading to the next version of your favorite app but not sure how your system will like it? Try it out first, and if everything looks good, you can go back and make it "real". When you want to make changes, you simply turn Returnil off and go about your business. Turn it back on and your changes stay put.

Returnil Virtual System Personal Edition is a free download for home users. It runs under Windows XP, 2003 Server, and Vista.

Download Returnil Virtual System Personal Edition

How secure do your need your system to be? How about so secure that you can't even see there is a system there? That's one of the options with TrueCrypt.

You can encrypt an entire disk partition or storage device, making the entire contents of that volume unintelligible. Beyond that, you can even make that encrypted volume "invisible", so that it cannot even be found through normal means on the system. Taking that to the extreme, you can even, with a little sleight-of-hand, encrypt your windows boot partition, essentially hiding your entire system. Now that's secure!

An obvious use for the functionality that TrueCrypt provides is to make sure your USB drives are perfectly safe to have and move around. If you should happen to misplace a drive protected with this tool, there is no way the data on that volume can ever be retrieved. That's the kind of insurance we can all enjoy.

TrueCrypt is available for both Linux (kernel 2.6.5 or compatible) and Windows (Win 2000 and later, including 64-bit versions).

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A proxy server is an interesting piece of the puzzle. Basically it sits between a computer and other computers, whether on a local network or the Internet. Requests for data–web pages, data files, and all that–flow through the proxy server between the two end points. This simple setup allows you to do many things that might not be available otherwise.

You can place a proxy server between your network and the Internet. Requests for web pages then flow through the proxy on their way to the Web. By using filtering capabilities, you can control which sites can be accessed through the proxy, You can also limit connectivity to specific times of day.

One of the big things that proxy servers allow you to do is to cache locally web pages which are accessed repeatedly throughout the day. Rather than each request for a page just being sent out across the Internet, a check is performed to see if that page has been retrieved recently, and if so then to serve that cached page instead of going out and retrieving the original. This can be a real time saver during busy times of the day.

FreeProxy works with broadband and even dialup connections, and can use "demand dialing", meaning it will make a connection only when somebody is actually trying to connect to the Internet. It can be run as a Windows service, meaning that it's running without taking-up any screen real estate.

FreeProxy runs on any Windows system from Win98 on up.

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Comodo Free Firewall is another weapon to add to your arsenal in trying to keep the Bad Guys from compromising your system, your data, and your life. Like all software firewalls, it works in two ways: it keeps bad things from coming into your system, and it keeps your system from sending bad things back out.

As with any firewall, you can configure which ports are open for incoming traffic. By keeping open only those ports you absolutely need, you limit your exposure to potential problems. As with software firewalls, it also keeps an eye on apps running on your system, and makes sure only those programs who have business talking to your network or the Internet are given permission to do so. By watching which apps talk to which ports, it can help keep spyware from "phoning home" with your credit card info and other such nastiness.

Comodo claims it can recognize over ten thousand applications that could be running on your system, and knows what types of potential vulnerabilities each of them can expose you to. This, coupled with its ability to serve up Smart Alerts, asking you in clear terms which apps should be allowed to send data beyond your machine, makes it an ideal tool to use as part of your overall security regimen, along with your regular antivirus and anti-spyware programs.

Comodo Free Firewall is a Windows app and is compatible with Win2k and later systems.

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The Internet's a dangerous place. Plenty of folks out there who want to put their stuff on your system, and they'll go to all kinds of extremes to get it there. You need to make sure that you do your best to keep uninvited visitors away. There are all kinds of tools that help to remove viruses, shutdown spyware, and otherwise help you to maintain a clean system. Here's one that does a bunch of those things all at once.

MWAV is one-stop shopping for detection and removal of bad things from your system. Along with virus detection MWAV hunts down adware, spyware, trojans, and other nasties and removes it from your computer. Getting start is as easy as just downloading the app and running it–there is no complicated install necessary.

When you download MWAV, you get the latest list of viruses so that you know you're getting rid of all the latest that the bad guys have up their sleeves.

MWAV is compatible with everything Windows, from 95 through Vista, and 64-bit versions as well.

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In the computer biz, a "sandbox" is a tool used to run programs on a system where there are tight controls on those apps, making it safe to run untested or potentially dangerous code on a computer. The stuff running in the sandbox is very limited in its interaction with the rest of the system, meaning that some nasty of malware isn't going to eat your computer's lunch while it's being run in the sandbox.

Sandboxie is a free sandbox app you can run on your machine. It stands between unknown, untested, and potentially unsafe applications and your hard drive, registry, and all. The "stuff" in Sandboxie is only alive as long as it is; once you quit, it all goes away. That means that you can visit unknown websites without having to fear that you will catch something nasty during your visit.

To start a Sandboxie session, you just right-click on its icon in the System Tray. At that point, you can choose to run a web browser or any other application in the sandbox.

Sandboxie is a Windows app and requires Win2k or later.

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By default, Windows boxes have had a bunch of security vulnerabilities built-in. Many ports–endpoints for computer-to-computer communication–were left open out of the box. Unfortunately, it is these very open ports that can make Windows vulnerable to exploits by the bad guys. Many of these ports really don't need to be open, but it isn't always easy to figure out how to close them down.

Seconfig XP is a helpful application that can give you a hand in locking down those communications ports that don't need to be open. While it gives hardcore sysadmin folks the power to tweak the machines in their charge to exactly how they want them configured, it also has three preset configurations to allow the rest of us to better secure our systems. Whether you run on a Microsoft network a standalone machine, or access a Microsoft network through a VPN, there is a preset that will lock your system down and make your life a whole lot safer.

When you run Seconfig XP the first time, it saves your current configuration, so if you need to roll back to your original state, it's an easy restore.

Seconfig XP runs on Windows 2000 or later.

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