MICROSOFT_PRESS_EBOOK_INTRODUCING_WINDOWS_10

Malware and phishing attacks typically cast an indiscriminate net. By contrast, targeted attacks aim
to exploit weaknesses in large organizations. Government agencies and companies that do business in
sensitive industries—defense, banking, and energy, for example—have to be constantly aware of the
potential for attacks from well-funded, technically skilled outsiders.
And don’t assume that your organization is too small or inconsequential to be a target for computer
crime. If your small business is connected to one of those large targets—even indirectly, as a subcontractor
or as part of the supply chain, for example—you might find yourself in the crosshairs, with the
attackers counting on being able to work their way up to bigger, even more lucrative targets.
The threat landscape certainly includes malware and intrusions, but it also includes data breaches,
unauthorized access to local and network resources, and physical theft.
In general, attacks can occur at any layer of the stack. Malicious agents can lurk in software, in seemingly
innocent webpages or documents attached to an email message, or in packets on a network.
They can target vulnerabilities in the operating system or in popular applications. Some of the most
successful attacks in recent years have come through so-called social engineering, where a would-be
attacker pretends to be something he isn’t—forging the sender’s name on an email message to convince
its recipient to open a booby-trapped attachment or visit a compromised website, for example.
Damage can escalate quickly if the attacker steals the identity of a support technician or network
administrator who signs in to a compromised device using credentials that allow greater access to
network resources.
You can also become a victim through no fault of your own, if a third party stores your credentials
insecurely and then suffers a data breach.
Securing hardware
The first layer of protection for a Windows 10 device is the hardware itself. Key security features in
Windows 10 (originally introduced in Windows 8.1) take advantage of modern hardware designs.
Although you can install and run Windows 10 on older hardware, you’ll get best results when these
two capabilities are present:
■ ■ Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) After 30 years, the PC BIOS has finally been
retired. Its replacement is UEFI, a firmware interface that takes over the functions traditionally
performed by the BIOS. UEFI plays a critical role in security with Windows 10, offering
the Secure Boot capability and support for self-encrypted drives, for example. (I’ll say more
about both of those features later in this chapter.) UEFI has been a requirement for original
equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to certify a system or hardware device for Windows 8 or
later under the Windows Hardware Certification Program (formerly known as the Windows
Logo program).
58 CHAPTER 5 Security and privacy in Windows 10