OPERATING SYSTEM SECURITY

Introduction
Operating system security (OS security) is the process of ensuring OS integrity,
confidentiality, and availability.
OS security refers to specified steps or measures used to protect the OS from threats,
viruses, worms, malware or remote hacker intrusions. OS security encompasses all
preventive-control techniques, which safeguard any computer assets capable of being
stolen, edited or deleted if OS security is compromised.

Categories/Types
Microsoft Windows Windows is the most used OS among computers thats why it
becomes a priority of attackers to attack Windows users and its made quite easy for them
by the availability more of viruses and malware for windows platform.
Mac OS X Produced by Apple, Mac OS X is the operating system used on Macintosh
computers. Although it uses a different GUI, it is conceptually similar to the Windows
interface in the way it operates. The Mac operating system is Unix-based, and Unix offers a
number of security features built in. So, Mac OS has lesser number of viruses compared to
windows.
Linux and Other UNIX Based Systems are the most secure operating systems. Because it
has very less number of viruses and malwares as compared to windows.

Benefits of Operating System

Windows
Ease of use Users familiar with earlier versions of Windows will probably also find the
more modern ones easy to work with. This is ascribable to everything from the standardised
look and feel of almost all programs written for Windows to the way the file system has
been presented ever since the days of MS-DOS (disk A:\, disk C:\, etc.). This is one of the
main reasons why Windows users are often reluctant to switch operating systems.
Available Software There is a huge selection of software available for Windows. This is
both due to and the reason for Microsoft's dominance of the world market for PC computer
operating systems and office software.
Backwards compatibility If currently using an older version of Windows and need
something more up to date, don't want to loose the use of some older programs that are
only available for Windows and are critical to your business needs, the chances are good
(although not a certainty) that those programs will also work with a newer version of
Windows.
Support for new Hardware Virtually all hardware manufacturers will offer support for a
recent version of Windows.
Plug & Play As an operating system for the average home user, Windows still has an edge
over the competition in the area of Plug & Play support for PC hardware. As long as the right
drivers are installed, Windows will usually do a good job at recognising new hardware.
Other operating systems also offer Plug & Play functionality, but to a lesser degree and
more frequently require manual intervention.
Games If crave the latest in PC gaming technology, then need a Windows. A plethora of
gaming titles are available for Windows, as well as lots of special gaming hardware that's
supported.

Linux
Open Source Linux source code is freely distributed. This allows many programmers to
collaborate on software projects of all sizes in order to offset the cost of development.
Quite often, the source code has been reviewed by literally thousands of programmers,
vastly improving it. No other operating system has ever been subjected to this level of
review. This is a huge advantage, especially when projects are large and complex. The
concept of Open Source is directly responsible for many of the advantages that follow.
Freedom to modify Open Source code is free not only for all to view, but also to modify.
Because of this, it is not only possible for it to be made to suit the needs of the many, but
also for it to be tailored to suit the needs of the few. Open Source software allows
companies to align their IT strategy to their own business objectives, instead of to those of
their software provider.
Low resource requirements Linux has become a very efficient operating system. In other
words, it requires far fewer resources to achieve results comparable to those of Windows.
That's not to say that Linux developers haven't been working to take advantage of the
amazing speed and capacity that the latest computers have to offer. It's just that there are
also Linux solutions available for those who would like to squeeze a few more miles out of
their old hardware.
The best security The principles of Open Source have added greatly to the security of
Linux systems. For those with a basic understanding of the rules involved, it's easy to
produce systems that are almost impossible to breach. From an administrative point of
view, this makes Linux computers very easy to manage: users can be allowed to do what
they need to do, but cannot get themselves into trouble.
Strong remote access Remote access is a great way to saving money on maintenance and
support. Like its relatives in the Unix world, Linux was designed from the ground up with
remote access in mind. Using the standard tools available to all, remote access on Linux
platforms is fast and efficient, reliable and completely secure even via the Internet.
Virtually immune to viruses As a result of its excellent security, Linux systems are as good
as immune to virus attacks. Generally, anti-virus software is not considered necessary. This
doesn't mean that Linux viruses don't exist of course they do. But, because of the way
Linux file system security works, it's much harder for any virus or worm to infect the system.
The only way for this to happen is for an administrator to install an infected program while
logged in as the all-powerful root user. However, this need never happen if a system is
maintained with caution and common sense.

Example of Standard Security Attacks

Physical Physical protection of the computer system.

Human Screening of users given access to the computer system. E.g. Phishing, Password
Cracking.
Network As network communications become ever more important and pervasive in
modern computing environments, it becomes ever more important to protect this area of
the system.
Operating System OS must be capable of protecting itself from accidental or intentional
security breaches.

OS Security Issues

Among the issues to be considered these are the important ones :-

- Physical Security
- Authentication
- Software Vulnerabilities
- Malwares

Security Threats in OS
 Unauthorized Access of the system by cracking the Access Security Methods and
spoofing Authentication for gaining full access of the system.
Unauthorized use of resources by installation of daemons running an unknown file
server, or logging every activity of targets System like keystrokes, screenshots etc.
Theft of confidential information, such as credit-card numbers, Account Passwords,
programming source codes, secret formulas, medical information, financial
information, etc.
Malicious Modification of data, which may have serious indirect consequences. For
example :- A popular game or other programs source code could be modified before
being released to the public to open up security holes on systems.
Viruses are one of the greatest dangers for systems. If they are once on the system,
they can do a lot of damage to the system.
Denial of Service, DOS Preventing authenticated users from using the system,
often by overloading the system with an excess of requests for service and to force
fully shut down the system.

Precautions for OS Security

To Secure the System and to avoid the Security breaches is must take some precautions in the OS.
Example of the security Components in the OS is:-

1) Bios Security
Bios is the boot menu where the machine selects a OS to boot.
Set up a Bios Settings Security password to ensure that nobody can change the Bios
settings to load any other OS by which any one cant be able to hack the user accounts
Passwords.
Be careful when setting it up if forgot the password may not able to Boot. So only set
Password for Bios settings not for Boot.
2) User Accounts Security
Create the User Accounts and set a complex password using alphanumeric characters,
symbols, Upper Case and lower case letters.
The Password must be strong enough that cant be guessed or cracked by various Brute
force or Dictionary Attacks.
3) Data Security
Data security is Quite important because private and confidential data needs better
Protection to avoid the danger of data stealth.
 It can only be done if lock and Encrypt Sensitive Data with a strong password and a highly
secure Encryption (128 Bit/256 Bit) method.
BitLocker Comes with Windows Default. Various Data Security Software available on the
internet. Example :- Folder Lock, Folder Protect, Data Locker & Etc.
4) Antivirus Security
Needed a good Antivirus Program to secure the systems from viruses like; Trojans, Worms,
Spywares, Key Loggers, Link Exploits & Etc. Example of Antivirus :- Eset Internet Security,
Avast Internet Security or Etc.
5) Firewall
The Windows OS got a Firewall. The Firewall must be always Turned On to block those
unwanted programs to access the internet and to restrict them from sending and receiving
Data over the Network.
6) Up-to-date
Always updating the latest patch OS and applications to improve the security and make it
stable.
7) Maintenance
Monitoring and analyzing logging information.
Performing regular backups.