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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.

Download Seconfig XP

In spite of other products that may want to stake a claim. it seems to me that the laptop computer itself may actually be the greatest thing since sliced bread. To take a notebook-sized box and put more computing power in it than used to fill a room is always amazing to me. This all comes at a price, however.

Nobody ever tried to steal ENIAC. It would have taken a truck–and not a small truck at that–to pinch that behemoth. Your laptop? Turn your back for a minute and it'll fit nicely into somebody's bag or folder.

If you're used to taking your laptop out in public with you, you probably have a cable lock to secure it to a desk or table. But do you always use it? Sure, you're only going to turn your back for a minute, and it's kind of a pain to unroll it that cable, wrap it around some stationary object, and lock it up. Is there anything else easier to use?

Laptop Alarm is an interesting application that may help keep your laptop yours. Configurable to choose which events trigger it, you can set Laptop Alarm to sound its alarm when the A/C power adapter is unplugged, your USB mouse is disconnected, or when the system is shut down. Since these are all likely scenarios for anybody trying to get the five-finger discount on your baby, you're more likely to not be separated from your system when it screams as it walks away. Not a bad deal.

Laptop Alarm is a Windows app and runs on Win98 or later.

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No matter how careful you are, sometimes spyware just happens. At best, it will slow your system down and hog resources; at worst, it may decide to "phone home" with your credit card information or more. Not a good thing by any stretch.

There are a lot of tools out there to help deal with the spyware epidemic. One that we recently ran across is the SUPERAntispyware Free Addition app. SUPERAntispyware allows you to customize your scans, so that you can explicitly include- or exclude folders and drives. This allows you to scan the way you want to. It also boasts a limited ability to repair broken Internet connections. Frequent updates are available for manual download, so you can always be on top of the next bad thing to come down the pike. SUPERAntispyware is compatible with most antivirus and spyware apps, so you can run more than one at a time–kind of a belt-and-suspenders approach to make sure nothing nasty is happening to your system behind your back.

While the publisher also has a Professional (paid) version available, all core functionality is available through the free version.

SUPERAntispyware Free Edition is free for personal home use. It requires Win98 or better.

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The Bad People are trying to get you. Viruses, Trojans, spyware–the list does go on. So the Good People provide tools to help you fight back. Antivirus apps, spyware detectors, firewalls to keep them out. Here's another weapon to add to your arsenal.

DriveSentry is like a firewall for your hard drive. In the same way that you can allow or deny apps the ability to talk to your local network of the Internet with a firewall, you can use DriveSentry to allow or deny apps the ability to write back to your hard drive. You can choose folders to protect, file types, removable media, and even your all-important settings files and the registry. By setting permissions on a application-by-application basis, you can be sure that when your hard drive is written to, that it's you who's doing the writing.

DriveSentry is a Windows app and requires Win2k or later.

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Spam is a nasty thing. It clogs up your inbox; it takes your time and attention to get rid of it. There are lots of tools out there to help get rid of it, but many of them require that you change your email client to get that protection. True, that copy of EZMailDesktopClient you've been using forever could be replaced, but it works just right with your routine. How can you add anti-spam functionality to that old tool?

Spam Experts Home is an app that may be just the ticket for you. Instead of replacing your familiar email program, Spam Experts Home sits between you and your mail server. Whenever your email program asks the server to give it any new mail that has accumulated, Spam Experts Home intercepts that request, and it downloads the new messages. It then sorts through them, and sends the good ones along to you. It works with both POP3 and IMAP mail systems, so it will probably work for you.

Using a "training period", Spam Experts Home lets you teach it what is spam and what isn't. Over time, it learns your preferences, and will get better and better and trashing the real spam, and letting the good stuff come through.

Spam Experts Home is a free download for home use. It runs on Win2k or later, although they are still working on Vista compatibility.

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