I sent this to my son so maybe he knows what to do - I am 82 & many strokes but still here.

"How to make Windows 10 secure" - Unplug from internet.

"Patch Tuesdays" are on Tuesday to give the Windows Update team the chance to set everything up on Monday and the rest of the week to react to any problems that may have arisen from the patch in the wild.

I like how, even though you don't like Windows, and you're a Linux expert, you really try to help the community out with common Windows problems.

10:20 I usually put a Backup of my files on my external HDD and I can put my head on my pillow without worrying

Possibly useful tip: In notepad, you no longer need to select "save as type: all files" to get something other than .txt as an extension. You could just enter file.vbs or whatever, and it will no longer save it as file.vbs.txt. Not sure when it changed, but certainly by the 1809 release of Windows.

FORMAT Hard Drive and Install Linux lol

I really don't like that Windows only pops up a Yes/No prompt for UAC if you're running in an administrator account, because it's human nature especially when busy to not give enough scrutiny to such prompts. In Linux, it prompts for the account password. This is a much better approach, because the time it takes to type in your password provides time to say "wait a second...." even when you are busy. It's annoying to have to do so, yes, but I definitely prefer it. The closest you can come in Windows is to create a User account as well as a separate Administrator account (which must be enabled). You log on as the User and type in the Administrator's password when prompted. BUT, elevated applications run in the *Administrator's* account, so, for example, HKCU in Regedit is for the Administrator, not the User. Microsoft also doesn't prompt for Administrator credentials even in applications they *must* know require them. If you try to launch Hyper-V Manager in a User account, for example, it launches and then eventually displays an error. You can easily edit the shortcut to always run as Administrator, but why it isn't set that way to begin with is unclear.

If users are annoyed when they have to click Yes on UAC "all the time", wouldn't they be as annoyed having to input admin password "all the time" as a standard user?

"How to Make Windows 10 Secure" can't be done, its designed that way.

should have released this April 1st

Hi Here’s Alan. I am not a computer profi. I learnt a bit of Excel VBA in the last few years to do a lot of important personal stuff. We have a lot of stable older Computers and operating systems in my large family which I look after,… XP, Vista, Win 7 and just 1 Win 8.1. I guess I need windows because I have got some important stuff working very well now for us in Microsoft office. I finally reluctantly added a Windows 10 machine to the collection a couple of weeks ago. ( It’s an older machine and a Profi reconditioned it, installed windows 10 and gave me the Installation disc and the activation Key. For a couple of weeks I have been getting clued up on Windows 10. Chris Titus’s stuff has turned up towards the top of my list of useful, informative and interesting stuff. A lot of his comments and criticisms confirm what I had suspected about Windows 10. I think soon when I am fully clued up, I will try a full clean re install, then take it from there.. I had an idea for an alternative approach to taming the Windows 10 beast. Was wondering what anyone’s opinion of it might be.. This is the story… I have a paid version of VPN from a VPN provider that I think is reputable. What I mean is, that , I think they hide me effectively. I can pick one of many servers to “hide behind” whenever I want So, first I register an Email address. I make up all the personal details but make them sound genuine. I might even connect to a chosen VPN server when I register it. (I will arrange that all incoming Emails are automatically copied and sent on to one of my normal Email addresses.) Now I pull out the internet cable from my Windows 10 computer. I do a full clean re install, and defer giving in the activation key. Initially I will let Windows 10 do most of the evil things it wants to. And I will even give it the Email address I made up to make an account with Microsoft. If all goes well, the first thing I will do will be to plug back in the internet and install my VPN Client and connect to the chosen Server. Then I will put in the activation key. I don’t intend using the Windows 10 machine much. I just got it as I thought I should have at least one “up to date” windows version. I might use it to download stuff, as it maybe has a better chance than my older systems of not getting infected by something, ( other than Windows updates!) But, importantly, I will keep it permanently connected to the chosen VPN server, at least whenever it is on the internet. So I am thinking it can spy and build up a profile if it so desires. I am thinking that the way I am organising it , it will be doing its deeds on an imaginary person, so no one will get hurt. And maybe I will have the small advantages, ( if there still might be some ) , of having an account with them, such as having half a chance to contact them, whilst my real identity is hidden from them… What do you think? Thanks, Alan

Re from Minute 5:35. From about May 2020 at about version Windows 10 2004 the option to 'defer' (not pause) available in the 'advanced options' dialog of Win 10 Pro is no longert available. ( However you can still defer (not pause) updates by using the Group Policy Editor (GPE). )

@5:22 if you're stuck with win10 home (or if your machine is loosely domain tied and you see the "These settings are managed by your system administrator) the options still live in your registry and are still configurable, but you'll have to look up the locations to edit and add values manually.

or just install Windows 10 LTSB/LTSC, no Cortana, Edge, feature updates, bloatware in start menu , straight out of the box. problem is, that win version is only for companies... if only theres a way for a regular user to get it... somehow... thinking about it makes me having nightmares, dreaming of huge white sails with black skulls and bones on them. or alternative would be giving a chance to Linux Manjaro, which im currently testing for last couple of days, looks very promising.

Just ditched windows for real this time wish me luck.

I had my last Virus more than 10 Years ago (probably >15 Years) Since then, i never had problems. And i never did these things you said to do in the video (except for the last 4 Years). The most usefull thing imho is a Sciptblocker in your Browser. I use uMatrix but most people use NoScript. Im sure you all know about that, but i just wanna say it. My usual Win10-Install is: Install Win10->launch OOShutUp->Run DeBloat-Script->Install gpedit (WinHomeEdition)-> Install Firefox->Install uMatrix(make sure you set 'block script' as default)/NoScript->and then i install all the Apps and Drivers i need.

Thanks a lot for making this video! I really needed it. I've been worrying about my privacy for a long time, I've been a Linux user for almost a month. But when I bought a new laptop I got tied to windows though I really tried not to. I'll try to get back to Linux but it's just that I might miss out on BIOS updates or might have driver issues on my HP laptop.

Thanks Chris, you explained it well, a simple way to give the average home user more security in Windows 10.

"I could make this a 15 minute video..." 17:08: ....

The day that I can play games with anti-cheat on Linux, I'm switching.

Good info. Love the new background.

The love the cmatrix command that you run behind in the monitors to install in your Linux system sudo apt-get install cmatrix

Run the free version of comodo firewall and sandbox your browsers. this will eliminate most security concerns. for the rest use your head and read the prompts.

Nice Vid, and thanks for the tips. I don't like Windows 10 in terms of its overall intrusiveness, but I still use albeit a hardened version on my host PC. I run VMs with various distros of Linux such as LinuxMX. I really enjoy the fact you can install a program on Linux, and you are not bombarded with adware. As a Cyber Security Analyst, it is also a great way to sandbox phishing related emails, reverting a snapshot when required. Having had experience within security industry, I find the biggest threat to end users are phishing related emails attempting to steal and harvest credentials. Many times an actor would compromise a weak Apache server, and then use web scraping to replicate a bank website or other sites that gather valuable PII information. A fake bank site for example would be then be uploaded to the compromised site's server. That's my 2 cents worth.

1903 is not the most recent. 1909 is out and 20H1 is comin soon. Right now I'm on 1803 but that EOL'ed 2 weeks ago. Thats as far behind as I like to get, I will have to feature update next month when the 1803 sec update doesnt come out. Been running O&O Shutup 10 for the past 3-4 years at least, very solid, does only the right things and lightweight.

In fairness to Chris and Microsoft, when I did run Win10, I used the Windows Defender/Whatever they call it now, and cross-tested with other anti-malware programs. NEVER found anything. Tested their firewall against ShieldsUp! and another site, and there was only a few things which even showed up as questionable (ports that if you totally shut them down you can have issues). I did not run the other anti-malware programs because the built-in defenses worked well out of the box.

Windows is enough secure if people use common sense and know how to secure it. I have setup various things which make it super secure and never had a virus in last 13 years of using computers and laptops (all without using any kind of antivirus software) 1. Use a standard account 2. UAC to its maximum 3. Software Restriction Policies with Disallowed as default setting and adding various Windows directories which are open to write and execute with a disallowed permission 4. Adding all kinds of executable file formats (around 50 file extensions) to SRP Designated File Types and blocking their execution altogether. 5. NTFS permissions to deny copying and execution from drives and folders. 6. Firewall tweaks to harden Windows Firewall The above makes Windows rock solid in security without using any antivirus software.

How to secure Windows: disconnect the LAN cable and don't plug it in while Windows is running. Have a backup of all important files. Use Linux for internet stuff.

I just recently switched over to Ubuntu Linux. I was tired of Windows 10 hogging up my processor with applications that I didn't even want it to run. I am very happy with the switch so far. The only downside is limited to no support for certain software, such as Adobe premier elements. I just thought of a workaround though. I can just use a Windows 10 VM that isn't connected to the internet. Very interested in other Linux videos you plan on making.

I cannot find ramsonware protection on my win10..... thanks for the tutorial.

I'd like to see a video on running Windows in a VM with Pass through if possible...

As someone who has been dabbling with Linux since the early to mid 2000s and is a daily user now (in large part thanks to your informative channel as well as some background in IT, but only programming under a Microsoft Windows environment [yikes...the Jedi......I know, I have embraced the Dark Side now *engages red lightsaber with pride*]). However, I do still use Windows 10 occasionally so my question for you, @Chris Titus, is should O&O Shut Up be used in addition to the Windows Powershell script that you provided that takes out Cortana, telemetry, etc., or is one more comprehensive than the other, or do they work in tandem? I have used your script on my main pc that I dual-boot Linux and Windows 10 and a Windows 10 laptop and both work excellently and got a significant performance boost. Is that enough or should I also run O&O, or would that just be redundant and unnecessary?

Those Basic Visual Basic Scripts let us do a lot of things

Maybe make a video for securing Win 7? Good AV, Updates to to the last available, use the internet in a standard user acct., right-click/scan each download. Done. xx

Controlled folder access greyed out in the off positon.

In a business-setting you have that annoying system-administrator which doesn't let you install programs but has only Internet Explorer or Chrome installed as browser and he has never heard of a proper text-editor like Notepad++. Great. :)

Windows is made to be vulnerable. So title of video should be "how to make windows less vulnerable. "

"How to make Windows secure" ...Ummmmmm not allowing access to the internet ?

You are Deliciously informative and helpful!

absolutely Awesome channel. thank you, Chris

You don't need extra security, windows inbuilt antivirus will do the job as good as avast will do, unless you have a pirated version of windows, on which case you should a legit copy.

Regarding the security update setting it up on 4 days is a double edge sword......it can help you if there is a zero day threat and the opposite is also possible

Hey there. I get an error when I try to run that script from your web page. It says “cannot find specificied filepath”

7:20 nice spyware, Cortana what a girlfriend

I daily windows 10 ltsc. It's amazing. I also have my other pcs running linux.

Please i download O&O setup 10 is red ON or the green i don't understand Ored or green which ?

Win 1903 is actually soon 1 year old..

NoVNC is smooth af

I am a unix/linux sysadmin so that's what I use for my own system. I do however use one windows program that I cannot get to run under wine, so I run windows 10 inside virtualbox. I was horrified when looking at wireshark logs just how much unrecognised traffic windows was generating. Couldn't be arsed setting up firewall rules, I just disabled the virtual network connection windows uses. Now I consider it "secure".

How to configure only security updates & not feature updates without windows pro?

Coming up soon is virtual personal person where you are in the center. You just take any computer and log in to yourself and have your own cryptically work space spread all over internet with automatic versions.

You're much more knowledgeable when it comes to Linux I feel

Could you make a video about windows firewall ( I cant figure out when I block all inn and out, what I need to open to make things work as they should.. and it seems like windows is adding and removing firewallrules by it self.) You have a good way of explaining, and Ive learned a lot from your vids, thank you!. Let me know if you can help with understanding windows firewall :)

i have a question, lookin att my LOG files, i mean there are atleast a thousand, events/warnings accumulated during one Hour. hmm & i dont even look so often att the LOGs...

Lets talks about securing Windows... Now lets talk about hunting rabbits with a ball point pen.

please let us know what you think of comodo firewall as a security tool for windows

Answer: Duel boot with Linux and avoid Windows unless absolutely needed. Congrats your Windows computer is now more secure.

Why would you put a program that gives administrator access on an admin account?

Chris, paaaleeeazeee try out Tech Tool Store from carifred.com - if you are using O&O anyway, you will find very good tools and programs in ONE central and SMALL file, which will download and open or install the newest version of the software you want to use automatically (comparable a bit with ninite for example), furthermore, for most of the tweak/security apps there is an export settings function (O&O included) and you just need to load the exportfile, hit apply and go on to the next tool. you can for example use Rkill first, before using any other tools to ensure there is no malicious process (ok "probably" no malicious process ^^) running in the background... there are even special uninstaller programs for the apps which weren't portable included + every windows-own-tool one could think of. it has nirsoft and sysinternals tools, anti-rootkit, anti-virus, cloud-scan-tools, sensor-based-apps, security advisors, tweak-apps, troubleshooters..... anything you could think of. TRY IT! it is free (in fact it is a trial, but you can use it after the trial period without any restrictions other than hitting "no" when you get asked to buy a license after starting the program.

I can't see the allow cortana thing.

Thank you for this video! I did not know about security issues histories of One Drive and Dropbox and I use them both! Yikes! Nice tip about putting both cloud folders in the Ransomware protection map list in Windows Defender. Just like you, I am worried about getting ransomware on my server. The server runs Linux and its role is mostly storing apps, backups, media, documents and game libraries. Does including root folders of the mapped network share drives on my main PC (running almost 24/7) help in protecting the server share effective enough or is it more efficient to install something on the server that does the same job as this "Controlled folder access" thing does?

That's easy. Install Linux and then VirtualBox, and then run Windows 10 in a VM.

Question, if you don't mind answering. I have to use windows 10 because a piece of hardware I have only has windows based firmware that i can't run on linux, so I want to know, if I use a secured windows 10 LTSC just for gaming, and then boot linux mint from a usb for my usual computer stuff, windows won't be able to interact with it, right? or is there a certain issue that live distro's like tails os does that by default linux mint installed to a usb would not have? I want to avoid dual-booting if at all possible, just because it seems like a real headache to deal with from what I've heard, as far as windows writing over linux and whatnot haha

Did you say it will disable security and privacy

I am a Linux user but guess the main reason Linux is more secure is because the hackers target the massive Windows user base. Probably Linux main security advantage is its lack of mainstream usage.

I'm certain I saw you in a Fatboy Slim music video.

Attention! Do not install O and O shut up! It monitors location data and device information! (This is a warning ⚠️)

Thanks Chris...how do u protect goggle drive from ransom ware? I’m currently using drive as a method for transferring files between a Linux box (just started using it fir first time 3 days ago) and my win 10 computer....still trying to get up to speed so I need both...

And why not use a microsoft account with 2-factor-auth, it has sooo many advantages over a local account... i restrict user accounts even to the point that they can not elevate anything AT ALL, and admins are bound to the maximum UAC level.

Last week I had to install windows on a notebook for a friend, it actually didn't give me the option to NOT login with a microsoft account. I had to create a new microsoft account to proceed with the install.

"How to Make Windows 10 Secure"... Dual-boot into Linux.

365 on feature is not good, I think. 1903 will probably be serviced for one year. So in one year still on 1903 you could be ot ouf security updates. And I have seen older Windows Version after some time just won't upgrade automatically without going to the website and using the update assistant

nice work. Most people hated Vista because it was more secure - you then got the new version of windows ME - win7 - bleh. for all the people who say linux is secure...... Apple used to say the same thing. once they got enough market saturation, they started getting hacked and viruses. linux OS is probably tight. who checks apps? Does every linux user use only apps that they compile (and check the code)? laffs. What Chris is doing is a good thing. it wont be long before he is doing the same for linux desktop.

Create tempadmin account Create normaluser account Enable Administrator account Delete tempadmin account Set password to Administrator account Disable Administrator account. Even you disable Administrator you can enable again with secure Mode, so dont worry. Only enable Administrator account when you need to install programs. Last step: format and install Gentoo.

"Allow Cortana" does not appear on my list. Can't complete this task as described. Help?!

Great thanks 😊

How much of this stuff will I not have to do if I'm run LTSC?

Relying on 3rd party tools, big nope for compatibility issues!

Hey Chris can you have a look at your Garmin GPS on Wine tutorial please? I tried many versions of Wine and still no luck, the GarminExpress setup always fails or crash and it does not install. I'm using Manjaro KDE, right now it has Wine 5.0 but I'm trying older version right now ,also trying older versions of the GarminExpress setup.. Will see if I can sort this out by myself but if you can make an update to this tutorial that would be great! Thanks!

You might know as i seen you doing debloat windows vid . I debloated my windows but in result i cant open my security centre , it looks like its opening but than instanly disapearing . Is there anyway of bringing back my security centre ? I have to mention that Firewall is opening and windows defender service is running , also it removed the security centre icon down right corner .

After creating scheduled task, when I run it still requires me to click yes. However in your video it just ran.

By using Linux, thx for watching and i'll see you in the next one.

all hail Lord Titus

I have Crab virus in my computer along time. I don't know to scan it.

I was installing Windows 10 two days ago and the only way to finish the instalation without signing in with a Microsoft account was to be disconnected from the Internet. Microsoft is making this harder over time.

Do a video on Wub if on Home Edition

16:48 whats this song named?

Does using a local account affect my ability to download and install my copy of MS Office 2013? I mean, you have to sign into your Microsoft Account to get it, right? Is being signed for MS Office also a security risk?

security in a microsoft operating system...shit i pissed my pants laughing at the joke! given the fact that government agencies have insisted code to suit there needs be included to the operating system security is a fantasy unless your definition of secure is anyone with access to exploits can operate your system . turning off services disabeling hardware and all the other normal ways to deal with microshafts intrusions do not work when they are remotly re enabeled

NEVER allow windows to update. But i understand why he says to do it. Great videos.

I absolutely HATE windows defender. I have slightly resource capped "gaming" laptop. The cpu is decent, but I only use the actual graphics card for gaming and integrated graphics for everything else and that's where the problems come in. There are couple huge offenders that screw me up: Most important are Windows/Microsoft Delivery Optimization, Windows Update and .Net optimization process. Those hog about 25% of my cpu, which in of itself isn't a huge issue, but then Windows Defender real time protection comes in and starts monitoring those things with minimum of 15% cpu utilization. That's where watching youtube and overall browsing internet starts getting annoyingly laggy. High response times etc. There's no way to disable real time protection for longer than few minutes at a time, I want it to last until I restart my computer. I used to use Avast to mitigate this, then I learned Avast is selling out to 3rd party so I removed it and used group policy to completely disable Windows Defender. Looking for options, honestly.

*Sigh* Im getting started with security setups and I did something following some of these tutorials and now if I try to run AutoCAD or FIlmora they request for writing permits to save my work. Anyone got any useful tip on how to solve this'? XD

I have a subscription of Bitdefender should I uninstall it and use the windows 10 anti virus? Or can I keep it running?

What if my computer requires me to enter a Microsoft account when setting it up?

Do you recommend I shut off Windows updates entirely then re enable them sometimes? If running home edition

At minute 6 in the video you said you are not going to get features updated for several years.. ?? - did you mean one year ( 365 days ) ?

Run your browser in a sandbox (eg. Sandboxie)

Yes, the UAC of Windows sucks. Another thing which drives me nuts, when you do a clean install of Windows then this is your "Users"-folder: - "All Users" - "Default" - "Default User" - "" - "Public" 5 user-folders while there is 1 user and there hasn't even been made an administrator account. When you go to the user-folder you have way too many folders which should be hidden but are shown, making it more difficult to access the user-folders which you use most. This is how MS creates the bad habit that users want to store files under root or whatever instead of in your user-folder. Microsoft should emphasize the KISS-rule to all of its software-developers.

Use common sense, and you won't have problems. Also helps if you are an experienced user. And don't login in with your admin account ^^ AND DO NOT INSTALL AVAST. PS: ROFL at the fanatical doomers commenting bellow.