Advantages and disadvantages of measures use to protect operating Research Paper

Advantages and disadvantages of measures use to protect operating system - Research Paper Example Operating system being a program is frequently attacked by viruses and therefore need protection so as to effectively and efficiently operate. There are several measures that are used to protect the operating system. However, the measures have certain disadvantages and disadvantages. This leads to differential in efficiency of measures used to protect the operating system. This paper discusses different measures used to protect the operating system and the advantages and disadvantages of each. It basically concentrates on three measures. Furthermore, it discusses ease of implementation and associated security management issues that need to be addressed. It also ranks the measures used to protect the operating system from the most effective to the least effective. Measures used to protect the operating system There are several measures that are used to protect the operating system. These are meant to deny unauthorized access to the system. They include use of strong password, protection of confidential information, making sure that the operating system and the virus protection are updated. It may also be use of supported and secure applications, wary of suspicious e-mails, storing of confidential information in HSU servers only, data should be provided wit a back up and it should be easily restored. Protection of information in all forms, learning security awareness and inquiring on matters that are not clear or certain. Measures used in protecting the operating system are aimed at protecting information from theft, natural disaster or corruption. It also ensures that information is only accessed by the authorized users. It also protects the operating system from collapse that may be caused by unauthorized persons. There are several measures that are used in protection of operating system as discussed above. However, the paper will focus on three measures only. They are use of a strong password, updating the operating system and the virus protection and data back up and ensuring they can be easily restored (Tatnall, Osorio, and Visscher, 2005, p 67). Use of strong password Operating systems are in most cases protected through passwords by most users. This is because this is one of the cheapest and easiest ways of protecting the operating system. Password may be in form of letters or numbers that are specifically known and recognized by the individual user. Furthermore, a password has to be unique to the user and unknown to unauthorized users. This ensures that unauthorized persons do not access data that they are not allowed to access by the respective persons. Password is widely used to protect the operating system by most users. However, it has both disadvantages and advantages (Meghanathan, 2011, p 79). Advantages of use of strong password (1) Guessing possibilit y; generally guessing a password is one of the most difficult things. This is because passwords are not usually displayed when entered. Passwords may be made long or short depending on the ability of the user to remember the password. This makes password difficult to guess and access the information without knowledge of the authorized user (Kim, and Adeli, 2010, pp 56-96). (2) Simple; passwords are simple and easy to generate. This is because anything may be used as password provided it falls within the accepted number of letters accepted by the system or that can be easily remembered by the user. Password may be words or letters or both. Furthermore, password may be in either upper case or lower case depending on the preference of the user (Kim, and Ad