Task 1 : Keep your system patched regularly

It is a fact that no software is 100% bugs free. Even though software developers try their best to eliminate them, bugs continue to remain hidden until a particular situation is encountered. And that's when the software breaks down or produces unexpected result. Or they just crash and freezes your Operating System. Intruders will exploit these bugs, looking for holes in these software to get into your computer.

How do we fix these bugs or close those known security holes? Most software vendors provide patches that are supposed to fix bugs in their products. Software users report bugs to vendor who in turn comes up with patches. Patches are simply software codes that you run once to fix the bugs in the original software. Some vendors, like Microsoft, provide such patches periodically, except for critical bugs which they release the patch immediately. Other software developers such as the Open Source developers, generally release the patches immediately for users to download and apply to their computer.

It is a good thing that Microsoft informs you of new patches as they release them. In Windows the Update Manager will pop up to tell you what patch are available for the Microsoft product you have installed on your computer. You can select which ones you wish to download and install. Or you could set your Windows XP to download and install automatically without you having to worry about doing it manually. There is pros and cons on taking such a path. Generally speaking, for novice users, it is recommended to set it to auto download and install. That way it'll take one thing off your mind.

While the patching process is getting easier, even to the point where it can be completely automated, it is not foolproof. In some cases, installing a patch can cause another seemingly unrelated program to break. For example it might cause the Windows XP to hang. it is simply impossible to test all possible programs with all possible patches to discover unexpected side effects. Hence it is a way of life really, to expect applying patches constantly.

Realistically to keep your system patched is a lot of work. It can be a full time job for system administrators just to keep up to date. You have to make effort to do it regularly, and they do come out regularly. I just started using Ubuntu, a Linux operating system, on one of my computer. And just about everyday, the Update Manager will pop up to inform me of the new patches release for the different software I have on my computer. I'm glad they make it easy enough to apply the patches, simply by clicking install.

Now the bottom line is simple. The more up to date you are with your system being patched, the less prone your computer is to attacks from intruders. And vice-versa.