Computer Security at Stanford

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Computer Security at Stanford

• What you need to know to keep your computer safe
• Monday, November 3, 2003

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Why Should I Care?

• Worms
• E-mail viruses
• You dont want to lose your Internet connection
• You dont want to lose the data on your hard disk
• You dont want people to spend your money
• Prevention is a lot easier than recovery

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What do I need to know about?

• E-mail viruses
• Malicious webpages
• Self propagating worms
• Spyware

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E-mail viruses

• Come in an e-mail attachment
• Once you open the attachment, it does whatever
  nasty things its going to do and starts sending
  itself out to everyone in your address book
• Be careful of dangerous attachments

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Malicious webpages

• Code that takes advantage of security holes to do
  nasty things
• Reset your homepage
• Install other viruses
• Break random things
• Keep your web browser updated
• Be careful of suspicious links

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Worms

• Keep your computer up-to-date on security patches
• Windows ? Windows Update
• Macintosh ? Apple Software Update

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Spyware

• Programs that track where you go on the Internet
  and report it to companies
• Also causes lots of nice ads
• Be careful what you install
• Use anti-spyware programs
• Lavasoft AdAware
• Spybot Search Destroy

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Anti-virus software

• Get it. Use it. Love it.
• http//ess.stanford.edu/
• Uninstall other anti-virus programs first
• Keep up to date virus definitions

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Firewall

• Restrict access to your computer
• 3 main choices for Window
• Windows built-in Internet Connection Firewall
• 3rd party free software (e.g. Zone Alarm)
• Professional security package (e.g. Norton
  Internet Security)
• Macs
• Built in firewall

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File sharing

• How Stanford handles complaints
• 1st time warning letter, 24 hours to comply
• 2nd time lose your Internet connection
• Stanford is legally obligated to do this
• Dont share content with the outside world!

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Disabling sharing