Top 10 Mistakes on Windows Internal Networks

In this paper I aim to highlight ten common mistakes on Windows systems, which make the job of a disgruntled employee or a malicious attacker who manages to get past your firewall, far easier. All of the mistakes are in re lation to Microsoft Windows operating systems, as my past experience at conducting internal network assessments, has shown me that the easiest way for an attacker to get onto any internal network is via these high -risk Microsoft Windows vulnerabilities. As well as this, because backward -compatibility is a feature of Windows systems, all of these mistakes apply to both Windows NT and Windows 2000, after all Windows 2000 is based on NT technology. For each mistake outlined, a tool or a technique, which will a id the system administrator in identifying if the problem exists on his/her network, is recommended. Using these command line tools is important for every s ystem administrator, as it is the best way to actually get to know the systems on your network and to realise that these are the actual tools that any hacker will use. Finally, solutions to m itigate the risks presented are also discussed.