It is increasingly difficult to be safe when we connect to the Internet. New threats appear every day that seek, in any way, to put our security at risk and access our data. Therefore, it is very important to start protecting ourselves from the lowest level, that is, from the operating system. And here, Windows 10 is one of the most evolved to offer the best security to all users as standard.
We cannot deny that Windows has always been, and continues to be today, the most vulnerable and most attacked operating system by hackers. Even viruses continue to use it as their primary target. However, since the launch of Windows 10 the risk of connecting to the Internet with this system has been drastically reduced. So much so that it has almost disappeared.
And not only thanks to Windows Defender , the antivirus that is installed by default in Windows 10. But also for all the other security modules that are installed and activated by default as soon as this OS is installed.
Windows Security, the Windows 10 antivirus
Surely the first thing that comes to mind is Windows Security (also called Windows Defender), the default antivirus for Windows 10. After five years Microsoft Security Essential being one of the worst antivirus on the market, with the arrival of Windows 10, this antivirus broke the market.
Today, Windows Defender is one of the best antivirus that we can install, being superior even to many paid antivirus. In addition to protecting us from virtually any virus (even the newest zero-day viruses), it also has other security modules that allow us to protect ourselves from potentially unwanted software and ransomware. It even has features to prevent malware from disabling it or changing its settings.
Can we install another antivirus to protect Windows? Of course. But with Windows Defender we don’t have to worry about viruses or our security.
Firewall, so that not a single byte gets in
Along with Windows Defender, Microsoft’s operating system also offers us a complete and robust firewall. By default it is configured so that, along with other security measures, it can protect us from practically any threat without having to worry about its configuration.
However, users who want to can have absolute control over this firewall and all the rules of it. A security measure that helps us to control everything that enters and leaves our PC.
Microsoft Defender ATP, the perfect antivirus for companies
Windows Defender may be fine for an average user. However, companies often need additional security measures to protect themselves much better from targeted attacks. And this is where ATP comes in.
Microsoft Defender ATP is a comprehensive security service offered by Microsoft to companies with Microsoft networks. It allows you to better control threats and vulnerabilities, reduce attack routes, remotely protect all computers connected to the network, and offer advanced features for threat tracking.
Windows Defender Application Guard protects Edge users
Although the classic Edge is dead and the new versions of Windows already bet on the new Edge Chromium, the classic Windows 10 browser also has an advanced protection module called “Application Guard”.
What Windows does is take advantage of Hyper-V virtualization to run the browser in a virtualized environment. In this way, access to memory, storage and other computer resources is limited. And if we access a website that endangers our PC, it will not be able to leave the sandbox.
Smart Screen, to avoid opening anything suspicious
Smart Screen is an intermediate layer between the user and the operating system that allows us to control everything that runs on our PC. This layer works especially when we try to open a program or file that has been downloaded from the Internet or that has come through any other program.
It is also capable of protecting us while we are surfing the Internet from Edge. SmartScreen has a dynamic database through which you can identify websites that may be dangerous, suspicious or used to carry out phishing attacks and, if you try to visit one, will block it.
User control, or UAC
User control is not new, it has been working since the Windows 7 era. However, with Windows 10 it remains an essential function to stay protected from malicious software.
What the user control system does is control all the programs that are run on the computer. If any of the programs that we open require administrator permissions, UAC will show us a window that we must confirm so that it can run with these privileges. If we do not accept it, you will not have those permissions and, therefore, you can not pose any danger.
Goodbye to exploits with Windows Defender Exploit Guard
Hackers are constantly looking for flaws in Windows, the processes and any program that we have installed on the PC through which they can initiate a computer attack with an exploit.
Windows Defender Exploit Guard is an additional security layer that comes by default in Windows 10 that protects us from exploits. And not only those that can exploit known bugs, but also those vulnerabilities that are still unknown. When any program tries to access memory and corrupt it, this shield will act and keep our PC protected.
Another of the Windows security measures thanks to which we can say goodbye to exploits.
Data encryption with Bitlocker
Lastly, as it could not be less, Windows has one of the most complete data encryption tools: BitLocker. This allows us to easily encrypt any hard disk, or external drive, that we connect to the computer. In this way, if someone tries to access our data and does not have the corresponding Windows password, they will not be able to access it.
The downside to this is that BitLocker is only available within the Windows 10 Pro edition. Windows 10 Home users cannot encrypt drives and disks with it.
