Ah laptops, once ugly, clunky behemoths, now an invaluable tool for students and anyone who wants to get a little work done outside of the office. However, operating outside of the office walls, these represent a special kind of vulnerability to the corporate network, as they face the risk of being lost or stolen, and their data or access to the corporate network compromised.
There are many tools available to protect the data on a laptop, and make sure that it cannot be accessed when the laptop is turned off, such as Microsoft’s Bitlocker. (You are running Windows Vista or Windows 7, right?) However, these machines are still vulnerable to having their passwords compromised through other means (such as social engineering), allowing an attacker to successfully log into Windows, especially if the laptop is taken while it is still powered on. In this scenario, the AuthAnvil Windows Credential Provider provides a useful extra layer of security by requiring the AuthAnvil token to be present at logon or unlock.
Today’s best practice is: Use the AuthAnvil Windows Logon Agent or Credential Provider on your laptops in addition to any security measures used to protect the data. You can enable cached credentials, so that users can log on up to 25 times without requiring an active Internet connection. You can also define an override password so that, if all else fails, the users can phone in and get the password to get access to their machines. You can find more information on the Windows Logon Agent and Credential provider by checking out the article in our documentation center.
Securing the data on your laptops is critical, so don’t leave a weakness in the form of the logon. As always, if you have any questions that you would like to see addressed here, please send them to support@scorpionsoft.com.
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