There is plenty of literature about securing computer and information systems for big business, and how to become a certified expert, but not much for home and small business users. A title from Addison-Wesley, Have Your Locked the Castle Gate?, is designed primarily for home users who want a basic guide to "the fundamental concepts and techniques behind information security that every computer user needs to know". It is also a valuable resource for small-to-medium businesses, especially those that use the Internet.

The focus is on Microsoft Windows operating systems. The author points out that Win9x and WinME cannot be adequately secured from within their own respective resources, but there is better provision in Win2000, WinNT, and WinXP. It is those latter systems on which the book concentrates. Apart from workstations and small networks there is also a discussion of server security.

An important feature of this title is its explanation and discussion of risk assessment. The author does a good job of introducing this most important aspect of security, providing useful self-assessment checklists. In that context he makes the following observation:

"Probably the single biggest cause of data loss from computer systems is human error. Most people eventually make a mistake that can be costly or even fatal if they work with sensitive data long enough. With good data recovery, you can simply restore and continue working. With no data recovery plan, you can be delayed - even out of business - in very short order. Here is probably the biggest secret to data security you'll get from this book: You're usually protecting your data from yourself and mundane mistakes."

That common sense tone is characteristic of this text; the threat posed by intruders, crackers, and others with malicious intent is discussed, but as one factor amongst others: power surges that cause hardware failure of data corruption, catastrophic hardware failures, software failures, virus attacks, and human error.

For Windows XP, 2000, and NT users there are details of the Registry entries required to achieve particular security settings, such as securing registry keys, and protecting the registry. Handy checklists are provided to assist users in keeping records of security settings and procedures. The mysteries of permissions, privileges, and denying and granting access are all revealed.

For anyone unfamiliar with the technicalities of computer security this is an excellent introduction that explains the terminology and concepts in clear language. In short, this is a hype-free, plain-language guide to the realities of computer security for home and small business users.

Brian Shea: Have You Locked the Castle Gate? ISBN 0-201-71855-X Published by Addison-Welsey, 193 pp., RRP $73.95 incl. GST.