Skip to main content

Easily Secure Your Computer From Intrusion With Your USB Drive and Predator


Predator is cool USB security software for Windows that enables you to lock/unlock your computer with a USB drive and provides loads of other features like logging, alert alarm, configurable lock screen etc. Predator adds an additional layer atop of the Windows passwords. So do note that it if somebody knows your login password, he/she can still login to your computer.
What Predator does very well is change how you login to your computer. First and foremost, it enables you to use a USB key to lock/unlock your computer without having to enter your password every time. Obviously this has it advantages and disadvantages.

On the upside, it let’s you unlock the computer without having to enter the password so users won’t need to compromise between the password strength and ease of use. On the other side, if anyone gets a hold of your USB drive, all they have to do is to plug it in and they will have access to your system.

You can download the Predator USB security software here. Once installed you need to run Predator with administrative privileges. It asks you to configure a USB drive as a key on the first run. Plug in a USB thumb drive, create a password and then create the USB key. With that done you are now ready to use the USB drive as the key to lock/unlock your computer. You can still use the USB drive to store any files as you would normally do. From now on if you want to lock the computer have a look at the Predator icon in the system tray, wait if it is red and if it is not, you can remove the USB key. The computer will be locked after a fixed interval of time that can be specified in Predator settings.

Talking of settings, lets have a look on the things you can configure inside Predator. First off as I mentioned above, you can customize the time interval between your pulling out the USB drive and the moment your computer gets locked. You can control how the screen looks like when the computer is locked. You can turn down the screen’s brightness all the way to 0, hide desktop icons and minimize all windows to show through the wallpaper when the computer is locked. You can also specify if you are using a multi monitor setup. You can set it to autostart with Windows and enable or disable pause. If pause is enabled you can use the system tray icon to prevent locking your computer when you remove the USB drive. Very handy, if you just need transfer a file or two with your USB key.

The thing I like most about the Predator USB security software is that the keyboard and mouse are disabled when computer is locked. So it is not easy to figure out how to unlock the computer. You can of course unlock the computer by simply plugging in the USB drive that you configured to work as a key. That being said, you can still unlock the computer using the password you set inside preferences dialog. Predator displays a password prompt if anyone hits 3 keys on the keyboard. The user then has 10 seconds to insert the USB key or enter the correct password after which the computer starts beeping, if there have been 3 unsuccessful attempts, an alarm is set off to let you know.

In addition to all the above mentioned features, Predator also logs every event so that you know if someone has been trying to get into your computer. Overall, Predator offers a nice feature set. While it doesn’t add any additional security layers, it obscures the expected interface, disables the mouse/keyboard and makes it that little bit harder to get into the computer without having authorized access. Predator works on Windows XP through to 7.
Let us know what you think of such solutions and how you prefer to secure your computer?
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Build Your Own Awesome Personal 3D Avatar with Avatara

Do you use social networks and want to build your own awesome 3D avatar? Maybe you want to send someone a cute cuddly image of yourself (kind of)? Or maybe you have your own ideas of what you would do with an Avatar… Well look no further than Avatara which I discovered from the MakeUseOf directory . You can create 3d avatars out of pre-set up templates or create your own from scratch. To start, visit Avatara’s homepage . You will see this screen: Click Get Started to umm, get started! That will take you to this screen: You see that you can build your own Avatar using an uploaded head shot like the Obama one above (just an example, guys). Or roll with one of their awesome avatars. I chose to start with a blank avatar by clicking Start with a blank avatar at the bottom of the screen. That takes you to here: I clicked on the filter at the top and told it to filter out everything but male characters and then I saw this: I rolled with Buck and continued. You need to click Select...
1 comment
Read more

MoviePass drops pricing to under $7 per month, if you opt for the annual plan

MoviePass, the subscription service that lets consumers pay a monthly fee to see unlimited movies in theaters across the U.S., is slashing its prices yet again. The company announced today it’s now offering its service for $6.95 per month, down from the current price of $9.95 per month, when customers commit to a one-year subscription plan. That works out to a flat fee of $89.95 annually. The deal is a limited-time promotion, as opposed to a permanent pricing change, but MoviePass didn’t say how long the offer is valid. However, it is open to both new and existing subscribers – the latter who would receive a 25 percent savings on their current subscription if switching over to the annual plan. This is not the first time that MoviePass has dropped its pricing. When the company introduced its $9.95 per month, one-movie-per-day plan this August, down from $15 for 2 movies per month (or more in select markets like L.A. and NYC, and going as high as $50), it saw so many new sign-up...
2 comments
Read more

ASUS VivoBook X202E Windows 8 Touchscreen Laptop Review And Giveaway

It wasn’t very long ago when prices of touchscreen Windows 8 laptops soared beyond $1000. Thankfully, those days are behind us, and portable computers can easily be purchased – touchscreen and all – for under $500. That’s precisely the demographic in which the ASUS VivoBook X202E falls. When compared to a high-end laptop, its specifications might seem modest, but for laptop buyers just looking for a way to browse the web, watch videos, use basic apps, and not spend too much money, something in this budget is perfectly suitable. The question is, of course, how does the ASUS VivoBook X202E compare to others on the market, and is it the one which you should be spending your hard-earned money on? Well, you’re just going to have to keep reading to find out. Best of all, we are giving away an ASUS VivoBook X202E to one lucky winner. Keep reading for your chance to take home this Windows 8 touchscreen laptop! Introducing the ASUS VivoBook X202E Laptop The ASUS VivoBook X202...
Read more