Security Essentials Section
March 9, 2009 Computer Safety Tip
Security Center is primarily a monitoring tool. Microsoft has identified three separate items identified as being 
essential to system security; a firewall, system updates and anti-virus protection. Security Center provides recommendations a user might want to consider to increase system security.
- Firewall – Windows XP included a firewall program as part of the operating program since its first release. Prior to the Service Pack 2 the firewall was not enabled by default. With the release of Service Pack 2 the default has been changed to enabled and the status is monitored by Security Center.
- Automatic Updates – SP2 now forces users to make a decision about Automatic Updates at the first reboot after SP2 install completes. If you do not turn on Automatic Updates at the point in the installation, Security Center will show that updates have not been configured. In an effort to get users to enable the updates, a (Turn On Automatic Updates) button is provided in the monitoring section.
- Virus Protection – After a clean install, XP does not contain any built-in virus protection, the section monitoring this security essential reports no virus protection was found on the system. If you’re upgrading a current install of XP to SP2 that already has an anti-virus application installed, it’s likely you’ll see an alternative display. There is a possibility the application may not even be recognized as existing on the system. Just because an anti-virus application is installed it doesn’t mean that Security Center will be able to accurately determine its state.
In some circumstances there will be a [Recommendations] button present in the monitoring modules. Clicking the [How?] link takes you to the Microsoft Windows Security Center Antivirus Partners site where you can obtain trial versions of different anti-virus products.
At the bottom of the Recommendation screen there is a section with a checkbox where you can disable monitoring of the specific module. Most third party anti-virus and firewall programs place an icon/s in the Notification area designed specifically to monitor the programs.
If you’re comfortable with the icons you already have, checking the checkbox will stop Security Center from monitoring the specific module and eliminate any security alerts you receive. Checking the box also modifies the monitoring module to a Not Monitored status.
