There are many reasons to track Windows user activity, including keeping track of your children’s online activity, protecting against unauthorized access, fixing security issues, and eliminating internal threats.
Tracking options for various Windows environments will be discussed here, including home computer, server network user tracking, and workgroups.
Check your web history
If you want to know what sites someone on your computer is visiting (for example, your children), you can find this information in your browser history Even if tech-savvy users might know ways to hide this story, it doesn’t hurt to check.
- In Google Chrome, click on the three dots in the upper right corner and click History
- Another way to access your computer’s history in Chrome is to use the Ctrl + H keyboard shortcut.
- In Firefox, go to the icon in the top bar that looks like the image below and click on German
- Then click “History“.
- In Microsoft Edge, in the upper right corner of the window, find and click the shooting star icon. Then click “History“.
Windows Events
Windows keeps you/”>track of all user activity on your computer The first step to determine if someone is using your computer is to determine when it was used.
- Click Event Viewer (local) to expand the Windows Logs folder.
- Expand the Windows Logs by clicking on it and then right-click on System.
- Double-click Filter Current Log and open the drop-down menu for Event Sources.
- Scroll down to Power-Troubleshooter and check the box next to it. Then click “OK”.
- Windows Event Viewer will show you when your computer has been woken up or turned on. If you weren’t using it at the time, it means someone else.
How to identify suspicious activity on Windows Server
If you are working in an environment with multiple Windows servers, security is vital. Auditing and tracking Windows activity to detect suspicious activity is paramount for many reasons, including:
- The prevalence of malware and viruses on Windows.
- Some applications and programs require users to disable some anti-virus programs and local firewalls.
- Users often do not disconnect remote desktop sessions, leaving the system vulnerable to unauthorized access
It is better to take preventive action than to wait for an incident to occur. You need to have a robust security monitoring process to see who logs into your server and when. This will identify suspicious events in the Windows server security reports.
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What to look for in your Windows Reports
A server administrator needs to monitor several events to protect their network from malicious activity by Windows users, including:
- Failed or successful attempts to remote desktop sessions. Li>
- Repeated login attempts, resulting in password blocking.
- Changes to Group Policy or Audit Policy that you did not make.
- Successful or unsuccessful logon attempts to your Windows network, member services, or domain controller.
- Remove or stop existing services or add new services.
- Registry settings changed.
- The event logs have been cleared.
- Windows Firewall or rules have been disabled or modified.
As discussed above, events are recorded in the Windows event log. There are three main types of native logs:
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How to track user activity in workgroups
Workgroups are organized networks of computers. They allow users to share storage, files, and printers.
It’s a convenient way to collaborate, easy to use and easy to administer. However, without proper administration, you open your network to potential security threats that could affect everyone in your team.
Below are tips for tracking user activity to improve network security
Use Windows Audit Policy
Follow the instructions below to keep track of what team members are doing on your network.
- Open Run by holding the Windows key and R.
- Enter secpol.msc in the box. next to “Open”: and click “OK”.
The Local Security Policy window will open.
- In the left column, double-click Security Settings Then expand the Local Policies option by clicking it.
- Open an audit policy, and then from the menu in the right pane, you will see many audit entries set to “Undefined”.
- Open the first entry On the Local Security Settings tab, select the Success and Failure check boxes under Audit these attempts. Then click “Apply” and “OK”.
Repeat the steps above for all records to track user activity in workgroups. Remember that all computers in your workgroup must be properly protected. If one computer is infected, all others connected to the same network are at risk.
Keyloggers
Keylogger programs track keyboard activity and keep a log of all typed text. They are an effective way to track Windows user activity to see if someone is violating your privacy
Most people who use keylogging software do so for malicious reasons. Because of this, your anti-malware software is likely to quarantine it. Therefore, you will need to remove the quarantine in order to use it.
If you are in the market, you can choose from several free keyloggers.
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