One of the most touted benefits of a Chromebook is its security. But are there any steps that owners can take that will improve and enhance the current level of protection?

Google claims that their Chromebook devices are virtually virus free. The machine has been designed using the principle of 'defence in depth' - meaning the Chromebook has multiple layers of protection and if one layer is bypassed, others are still in effect.

The existing layers are already very extensive and cover a lot of potential threats. Automatic updates, sandboxed browsing, verified boot and vitally important localised data encryption all remove a lot of typical avenues that viruses and hackers use to compromise machines. Of course, even if something does manage to evade all this protection, the Chromebook devices are easy to recover and re-sync.

What additional measures can users take advantage of to further protect their device?

Guest Browsing

While the Chromebook offers many features to help protect your security against hackers and viruses, there is very little it can do to prevent human error. Security can be compromised by something as simple as leaving yourself logged in to a service. Forget to log off your Facebook account and the next user has your world in their hands, not to mention that the nature of Chromebooks means anyone using your machine is just one click away from your Gmail account - complete with emails from banks, credit card companies and employers.

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Guest browsing is designed to combat these potential security compromises. It means you can share your Chromebook with other people whilst still keeping your information secure. Guest browsing lets users visit websites and download files, but they can't install apps and they can't see any of your data. Guests also cannot create bookmarks (and can't see your bookmarks) and cannot access apps that have already been installed.

When a guest user logs out the Chrome OS erases all trace of their session, from browser histories and cookies to downloaded files and saved passwords. The feature eradicates the problem of a person have unrestricted access to all your information.

Of course, if you are the only person who uses your Chromebook then leaving guest browsing turned is on is arguably unnecessary. However, if you are living or working in an environment where anyone is liable to pick up your machine and start using it without your knowledge then the feature is a welcome addition to the Chromebooks extensive security features.

Like everything with a Chromebook, enabling guest browsing is a simple straightforward process. Follow the steps below to change your setup:

  1. Select 'Settings' from the status area in the bottom right of your screen
  2. Scroll down to the 'Users' section and click on 'Manage other users...'
  3. On the pop-up screen tick the check-box next to 'Enable Guest browsing'
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Restricted Sign-In

One of the best features of a Chromebook is that in its purest sense it is just a piece of hardware with no localised personalisation. In practice this means you can log into any Chromebook with your Google account and it will look and feel exactly like your own Chromebook.

The negative of this from a security viewpoint is that you have no control over that sign-in account. Although Chromebooks are virtually virus free there remains the potential for Chrome Web Store apps to become malicious - even an app that was once safe could be sold by the original developer and later turn malicious. A malicious app could insert adverts on webpages and spy on your internet usage.

The restricted sign-in feature allows the Chromebook owner to control which other accounts can log into the machine. Access can be restricted to just the owners account, or limited to the accounts of close friends or family that the owner believes pose no security risk.

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To edit the list of permitted users follow the following instructions:

  1. Select 'Settings' from the status area in the bottom right of your screen
  2. Scroll down to the 'Users' section and click on 'Manage other users...'
  3. On the pop-up screen tick the check-box next to 'Restrict sign-in to the following users'
  4. Add the names or email addresses of permitted users in the space provided

Bonus Tip

If you want to use your Chromebook in a public place, or perhaps you work in an office with a BYOD policy, you might want to conceal your username and picture from the initial sign-in screen in order to help maintain your privacy. To do this simply uncheck the box next to 'Show usernames and photos on the sign-in screen' in the 'Manage other users...' menu.

Conclusion

The Chromebook is already extremely secure, but if you want to protect your machine and your data beyond the initial Chromebook offering, these tweaks will help you. What do you think? Do you know of any additional security measures that can be taken? Let us know in the comments below.

Image Credits: TechnologyGuide TestLab Via Flickr