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The real issue here is that the attacker only needs physical access to your hard drive in order to read or manipulate the files which contain your password hashes. There is already a thread on SuperUser which has some recommendations, which I will likely repeat here.

How to secure my Windows 7 PC?

As security compromises of a PC go, physical access is perhaps by far the worst kind. Once an attacker has their hands on your computer, most other security methods in place are easily circumvented. That said, here's what you can do to prevent or hinder these attacks from affecting your system.

1. Use strong passwords. Make them 15 characters long at minimum, and use all four character types (lowercase letters, uppercase letters, numbers, non-alphanumerics). Also, avoid using any dictionary words in any part of the password. Lastly, do not write it down!
2. Encrypt the hard drive. This will prevent any attacker from reading or manipulating the system files when booting into their own environment. This is the only measure that will generally survive an attack involving physical access to the system. Also, see item 1.
3. Lock down the BIOS and Boot Order. Set the system to only boot to the system drive, and set an Administrator password on the BIOS so that this cannot be changed. Also, see item 1.
4. Physically secure the system case. If possible, lock the system's chassis with a padlock and/or place it in a secured cabinet. A chassis lock will hinder efforts to clear the BIOS password by using jumpers on the motherboard, and efforts to remove the hard drive for loading into another system. A secured cabinet will do that, and also hinder any attempts at plugging in or loading alternative boot media. For ideal security, and if you're really paranoid, do both.

The real issue here is that the attacker only needs physical access to your hard drive in order to read or manipulate the files which contain your password hashes. There is already a thread on SuperUser which has some recommendations, which I will likely repeat here.

How to secure my Windows 7 PC?

As security compromises of a PC go, physical access is perhaps by far the worst kind. Once an attacker has their hands on your computer, most other security methods in place are easily circumvented. That said, here's what you can do to prevent or hinder these attacks from affecting your system.

1. Use strong passwords. Make them 15 characters long at minimum, and use all four character types (lowercase letters, uppercase letters, numbers, non-alphanumerics). Also, avoid using any dictionary words in any part of the password. Lastly, do not write it down!
2. Encrypt the hard drive. This will prevent any attacker from reading or manipulating the system files when booting into their own environment. This is the only measure that will generally survive an attack involving physical access to the system. Also, see item 1.
3. Lock down the BIOS and Boot Order. Set the system to only boot to the system drive, and set an Administrator password on the BIOS so that this cannot be changed. Also, see item 1.
4. Physically secure the system case. If possible, lock the system's chassis with a padlock and/or place it in a secured cabinet. A chassis lock will hinder efforts to clear the BIOS password by using jumpers on the motherboard, and efforts to remove the hard drive for loading into another system. A secured cabinet will do that, and also hinder any attempts at plugging in or loading alternative boot media. For ideal security, and if you're really paranoid, do both.

The real issue here is that the attacker only needs physical access to your hard drive in order to read or manipulate the files which contain your password hashes. There is already a thread on SuperUser which has some recommendations, which I will likely repeat here.

http://superuser.com/questions/222080/how-to-secure-my-windows-7-pc

As security compromises of a PC go, physical access is perhaps by far the worst kind. Once an attacker has their hands on your computer, most other security methods in place are easily circumvented. That said, here's what you can do to prevent or hinder these attacks from affecting your system.

1. Use strong passwords. Make them 15 characters long at minimum, and use all four character types (lowercase letters, uppercase letters, numbers, non-alphanumerics). Also, avoid using any dictionary words in any part of the password. Lastly, do not write it down!
2. Encrypt the hard drive. This will prevent any attacker from reading or manipulating the system files when booting into their own environment. This is the only measure that will generally survive an attack involving physical access to the system. Also, see item 1.
3. Lock down the BIOS and Boot Order. Set the system to only boot to the system drive, and set an Administrator password on the BIOS so that this cannot be changed. Also, see item 1.
4. Physically secure the system case. If possible, lock the system's chassis with a padlock and/or place it in a secured cabinet. A chassis lock will hinder efforts to clear the BIOS password by using jumpers on the motherboard, and efforts to remove the hard drive for loading into another system. A secured cabinet will do that, and also hinder any attempts at plugging in or loading alternative boot media. For ideal security, and if you're really paranoid, do both.

The real issue here is that the attacker only needs physical access to your hard drive in order to read or manipulate the files which contain your password hashes. There is already a thread on SuperUser which has some recommendations, which I will likely repeat here.

How to secure my Windows 7 PC?

As security compromises of a PC go, physical access is perhaps by far the worst kind. Once an attacker has their hands on your computer, most other security methods in place are easily circumvented. That said, here's what you can do to prevent or hinder these attacks from affecting your system.

1. Use strong passwords. Make them 15 characters long at minimum, and use all four character types (lowercase letters, uppercase letters, numbers, non-alphanumerics). Also, avoid using any dictionary words in any part of the password. Lastly, do not write it down!
2. Encrypt the hard drive. This will prevent any attacker from reading or manipulating the system files when booting into their own environment. This is the only measure that will generally survive an attack involving physical access to the system. Also, see item 1.
3. Lock down the BIOS and Boot Order. Set the system to only boot to the system drive, and set an Administrator password on the BIOS so that this cannot be changed. Also, see item 1.
4. Physically secure the system case. If possible, lock the system's chassis with a padlock and/or place it in a secured cabinet. A chassis lock will hinder efforts to clear the BIOS password by using jumpers on the motherboard, and efforts to remove the hard drive for loading into another system. A secured cabinet will do that, and also hinder any attempts at plugging in or loading alternative boot media. For ideal security, and if you're really paranoid, do both.

The real issue here is that the attacker only needs physical access to your hard drive in order to read or manipulate the files which contain your password hashes. There is already a thread on SuperUser which has some recommendations, which I will likely repeat here.

http://superuser.com/q/222080/50086

As security compromises of a PC go, physical access is perhaps by far the worst kind. Once an attacker has their hands on your computer, most other security methods in place are easily circumvented. That said, here's what you can do to prevent or hinder these attacks from affecting your system.

1. Use strong passwords. Make them 15 characters long at minimum, and use all four character types (lowercase letters, uppercase letters, numbers, non-alphanumerics). Also, avoid using any dictionary words in any part of the password. Lastly, do not write it down!
2. Encrypt the hard drive. This will prevent any attacker from reading or manipulating the system files when booting into their own environment. This is the only measure that will generally survive an attack involving physical access to the system. Also, see item 1.
3. Lock down the BIOS and Boot Order. Set the system to only boot to the system drive, and set an Administrator password on the BIOS so that this cannot be changed. Also, see item 1.
4. Physically secure the system case. If possible, lock the system's chassis with a padlock and/or place it in a secured cabinet. A chassis lock will hinder efforts to clear the BIOS password by using jumpers on the motherboard, and efforts to remove the hard drive for loading into another system. A secured cabinet will do that, and also hinder any attempts at plugging in or loading alternative boot media. For ideal security, and if you're really paranoid, do both.

The real issue here is that the attacker only needs physical access to your hard drive in order to read or manipulate the files which contain your password hashes. There is already a thread on SuperUser which has some recommendations, which I will likely repeat here.

http://superuser.com/questions/222080/how-to-secure-my-windows-7-pc

As security compromises of a PC go, physical access is perhaps by far the worst kind. Once an attacker has their hands on your computer, most other security methods in place are easily circumvented. That said, here's what you can do to prevent or hinder these attacks from affecting your system.

1. Use strong passwords. Make them 15 characters long at minimum, and use all four character types (lowercase letters, uppercase letters, numbers, non-alphanumerics). Also, avoid using any dictionary words in any part of the password. Lastly, do not write it down!
2. Encrypt the hard drive. This will prevent any attacker from reading or manipulating the system files when booting into their own environment. This is the only measure that will generally survive an attack involving physical access to the system. Also, see item 1.
3. Lock down the BIOS and Boot Order. Set the system to only boot to the system drive, and set an Administrator password on the BIOS so that this cannot be changed. Also, see item 1.
4. Physically secure the system case. If possible, lock the system's chassis with a padlock and/or place it in a secured cabinet. A chassis lock will hinder efforts to clear the BIOS password by using jumpers on the motherboard, and efforts to remove the hard drive for loading into another system. A secured cabinet will do that, and also hinder any attempts at plugging in or loading alternative boot media. For ideal security, and if you're really paranoid, do both.