Chapter 16. Working with users and privacy

In this section:

• Enabling Windows Firewall

• Allowing apps to access your personal information or location

• Using Windows Defender

• Creating new users

• Creating a picture password

• Creating a PIN

• Switching among user accounts

• Managing User Account Control settings

• Turning on Family Safety

• Working with Family Safety settings

Windows 8.1 offers a lot of features to help keep you, your children, your computer, and your data safe. Some of these features keep intruders, hackers, and malware at bay while you are connected to the Internet; others keep unwanted users from accessing your personal data if they ever gain physical access to your computer. Still other features can help keep your kids safe by restricting what they can and can’t do while using the computer. When you enable and incorporate all of the security features outlined in this section, and if you make sure to lock your computer when you aren’t using it, you can rest assured that your computer and its data will be as safe and secure as possible.

Enabling Windows Firewall

Windows Firewall protects your computer several ways. Succinctly, Windows Firewall looks at all of the data going in and out of your device and blocks transmissions deemed harmful or transmissions that you don’t explicitly approve (such as a person who wants to access and control your computer from a remote location). Windows Firewall is enabled by default, but it’s best to verify this and to explore the firewall’s basic settings.

Enable Windows Firewall

1. On the Start screen, begin to type Windows Firewall.

2. In the results, click Windows Firewall.

   

3. Verify that the firewall is turned on.

   

4. If the firewall is not enabled and you know you have not installed a third-party firewall, do the following:

   1. Click Turn Windows Firewall On Or Off.

   2. Select the Turn On Windows Firewall option under Private Network Settings and Public Network Settings.

   3. Click OK.

   

Tip

When you want to use an app that is blocked by default by Windows Firewall, you’ll be prompted to allow it (make an exception for it). This will happen when you want to enable certain apps, or when you want to use Windows features such as Connect To A Network Projector or Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service.

Allowing apps to access your personal information or location

You can use privacy settings in Windows 8.1 to allow apps to access your physical location or your name and account picture. There are times where you will need this to be enabled—for example, when using Maps to get directions from your current location to another (without having to type your current location in manually). There are times when offering access isn’t necessary too, such as when an app asks for personal information and doesn’t need it (like a dictionary app).

Allow access to your personal information or location

1. Press Windows logo key+I to open the Settings charm.

2. Click Change PC Settings.

   

3. If you see a Back arrow, click it.

   

4. Click Privacy.

   

5. From the General tab, use the slider to configure the desired settings, taking specific note of Let Apps Access My Name, Picture, And Other Account Info.

   

   Tip

   There is some danger associated with allowing access to your location. If you or your children are concerned that an individual might want to know where you are at any point in time, you are more at risk if you carry a laptop or tablet device with you, and you might consider blocking this access. However, for most people, this feature simply adds convenience when using certain applications.

6. Click Location.

7. To disable all apps from learning your location, move the slider under Location from On to Off.

8. To disable specific apps from learning your location, move the slider for each of those apps from On to Off.

   

See Also

Network security can help you control who has access to your files and data. When you create a network, you establish your network security type. See Chapter 15, for more about network security settings.

Using Windows Defender

Windows 8.1 provides built-in protection against viruses and spyware with a feature called Windows Defender. Integrated with Internet Explorer, Windows Defender scans files you download from the Internet to detect threats. When turned on, the program automatically provides real-time protection against multiple types of threats, stopping malware from being downloaded. You can also run manual scans any time you like, if you feel your computer has been compromised.

Use Window Defender

1. On the Start screen, begin to type Windows Defender.

2. Click Windows Defender in the results.

   

3. Click the Settings tab.

4. Make sure the Turn On Real-Time Protection check box is selected.

   

5. If applicable, click Save Changes.

6. Click the Home tab.

7. If desired, click Scan Now.

   

Tip

Updates are performed automatically when real-time protection is turned on. These updates happen at least twice a day, provided your computer is connected to the Internet and turned on. To run a manual update at any time, click the Update tab of Windows Defender and then click the Update button.

Try This!

You can customize a Windows Defender scan. Follow the steps in this task, but at step 7, click the Custom option. When you click the Scan Now button, you can select check boxes for the drives you want to scan. For example, you can scan only your hard disk, any DVD or removable/external drive attached to your computer, or all drives. Click OK to run the scan.

Creating new users

When you set up your computer for the first time, you created and logged in with your own user account. Ideally, that was a Microsoft account. This first account was automatically assigned to be an Administrator account, which means that you, as the administrator, have complete control over the computer.

If anyone else is going to use the computer, they should have an account too. It should also be a Microsoft account, provided the user is a teenager or adult. Because you are the computer administrator, you can create the account. By default, that account won’t be another Administrator account, but will instead be a Standard account. Standard users can’t make administrative changes to the computer like administrators can, and thus are limited in the damage they can do. (Alternatively, you can create a child account, which is a local account and is not associated with a Microsoft account.)

Create a new user

1. Press Windows logo key+I to open the Settings charm.

2. Click Change PC Settings.

   

3. If you see a Back arrow, click it.

   

4. Click Accounts.

   

5. Click Other Accounts.

6. Click Add An Account.

   

7. Type the user’s Microsoft Account. (You can also sign up for a new email address or opt to add a child’s local account.)

8. Click Next.

   

9. Click Finish.

   

Tip

You won’t know the password associated with the Microsoft account you’ve created in these steps. To fully activate the account, have the new user log on to the computer with it.

Tip

If you opt to create a child’s account in step 7 or sign up for a new Microsoft account, the remaining steps will differ from what is offered here.

Creating a picture password

If typing your password is cumbersome (which it can be on a touch screen device), you can create a picture password for logging in. You get to pick the picture and create three unique on-screen gestures to associate with it, which you repeat to log on.

Create a picture password

1. On the Start screen, type Picture Password.

2. In the results, click Set Up Picture Password.

   

3. Under Picture Password, click Add.

   

4. Enter your password.

5. Click OK.

   

6. Click Choose Picture.

   

7. Navigate to a picture to use.

8. Click the picture to use.

9. Click Open.

   

10. Click Use This Picture.

    

11. Apply the gestures as instructed.

    

12. Click Finish.

    

See Also

To learn how to navigate to a file as instructed in step 7, refer to Chapter 18.

Creating a PIN

Entering an email address and password might require that you type 20 or 30 characters, which takes a bit of time. It can be cumbersome too, especially if you use a touch screen. If you’d rather, you can create a PIN, a password that consists of only four numbers.

Create a PIN

1. On the Start screen, type Set up PIN.

2. Click Set Up PIN Sign-In in the results.

   

3. Under PIN, click Add.

   

4. Enter your password.

5. Click OK.

   

6. Enter a PIN and then confirm it.

7. Click Finish.

   

Tip

Just as with a password, make your PIN hard to guess, even though the characters are limited in number. For example, don’t use part of your phone number, street address, or date of birth, because these pieces of information are often publicly available. If you need something that’s not totally random to help you remember it, use a number that represents a date or year that has special meaning known only to you, or part of a phone number from 10 years ago.

Switching among user accounts

After you’ve set up multiple user accounts on your Windows 8.1-based computer, you’ll want each user to log in with that account when they want to use the computer, and then log out, lock, or shut down the computer when they’re finished. You change to a different account from the lock screen.

Log in as a different user

1. If the previous user did not lock the computer, click Windows logo key+l to lock it.

2. Drag the screen upward to reveal the user logon screen, if applicable.

   

3. Click the applicable user picture.

   

4. Enter the user password, and press Enter on the keyboard, or enter the PIN.

   

Tip

If you have administrative privileges on your Windows 8.1-based device, you can manage the accounts you’ve created. You can set up Family Safety for each account, change the account type, delete accounts, and more.

Tip

When you are ready to end a computing session, you should return the computer to its lock screen. You can do this in various ways. One way is to click your user account picture on the Start screen and then click either Lock or Sign Out. (They keyboard combination Windows key+l works too.) If you lock the computer, the next time you log in things are just as you left them; your apps and data are exactly where they were before. If you sign out, you’ll need to save your work, close all open desktop applications, and end your computing session. When you log back in, you’ll start a new session.

Managing User Account Control settings

You can use the User Account Control Settings dialog box to set up, by user, how Windows notifies you before programs are installed on your computer or when there are attempts to make changes to your Windows settings. You can choose a level of protection that works best for each user. If only one user on the computer has administrative level permissions, it can be useful to set up the Always Notify level of account control for that person so that she knows when other users try to make changes.

Change User Account Control settings

1. Right-click the Start button.

2. Click Control Panel.

   

3. Click System And Security.

   

4. Under Action Center, click Change User Account Control Settings.

   

5. Drag the slider to the setting you prefer, with Always Notify being the most secure and Never Notify being the least secure.

6. Click OK.

   

Caution

You should not disable UAC. UAC protects against all kinds of malware. If you disable it, you are opening several holes for hackers, viruses, and other evils.

See Also

For more information about making settings for individual users, see Create a new user, earlier in this section.

Turning on Family Safety

If children use your computer, consider setting up Family Safety controls through their user accounts. These controls allow you to configure different settings for each child. For example, you might want to limit the time a teen spends online, or block a younger child from using certain programs on your computer.

Turn on Family Safety

1. Right-click the Start button.

2. Click Control Panel.

   

3. Click Set Up Family Safety For Any User.

   

4. If applicable, work through the wizard to create a child account. Click the first instance of Accounts to get started.

   

5. In PC Settings from the Other User tab from Accounts, click Add An Account.

   

   1. Click Add A Child’s Account.

      

   2. Choose to add a child’s account with or without email, or sign up for a new email address.

      

   3. Work through the required process depending on what you selected in step 5b, and then create a user name and password.

      

See Also

See the next task for managing individual Family Safety control settings after you’ve enabled and/or created a child’s account.

Working with Family Safety settings

With Family Safety settings, you can set time limits so that you can control the amount of time and the time periods for which your child can use the computer. You can choose which games children can access by rating, content, or title. Finally, you can block specific programs from being used by your child on your computer. Ideally, you should configure Family Safety settings online and manage them there. This set of steps outlines how to do this. (Note that you can also set up an account for “assigned access”, where you choose an account to have access to only one Windows Store app.)

Work with Family Safety settings (set a time allowance)

1. Return to PC Settings, Accounts, Other Accounts, where you created the child account in the previous set of steps.

2. Click Manage Family Safety Settings Online.

   

3. If prompted, input your user name and password to access the Family Safety web page, shown here.

4. Click your child’s account.

   

5. Note the options in the right pane; click Time Limits.

   

6. Move the slider for Time allowance from Off to On.

7. If desired, set how many hours the child can use the computer weekdays and weekends, using the drop down lists. If you’d rather select specific times of the day, change these to Varies and skip to step 7.

8. Click Curfew.

   

9. Move the slider for Curfew hours from off to On. .

10. Click and drag with the mouse to block off periods of time when the child cannot use the computer.

    

11. Continue in the same manner to configure additional options including Activity Reporting, Web filtering, App Restrictions, Game Restrictions, and Requests.

Try This

Make a list of the types of content that make sense for each of your children so that you can access and review those choices periodically as they grow up. For example, you might choose to change settings for the junior high student to appropriate settings for a high school student when the time comes to help him “graduate” to a more mature phase.