Platinum Edition Using® Microsoft® Windows® XP

Hardware Security

So far in this chapter we've focused on securing your computer through software. However, there are several security measures you can take through hardware.

To be sure, if someone can gain physical access to your computer, there isn't much you can do to prevent them from breaking into it…NTFS security is great, but if your disks are removed and installed in a computer on which the thief has Administrator privileges, all files that aren't protected by the Encrypting File System can be read.

So, if security is a concern, you should encrypt files that contain sensitive information. You must also take steps to prevent a thief from breaking into your account, which would give him access to your files. With physical possession of ...