Microsoft has created a special Web site to help customers protect their PCs against harmful viruses and security breaches. This site has the latest information about current security updates, antivirus efforts, as well as privacy issues. There, you can also sign up to receive e-mail bulletins about security updates and current issues, and you can find a wide range of information about general security and privacy concerns, links to security community chats, and a glossary of security terms.

• Sign up for security bulletins on the Microsoft Security site
• How to tell whether a Microsoft security-related message is genuine

General security information for Office

The need to protect your data from viruses has become part of the everyday business of working on computers and sharing data with colleagues. The Microsoft Office System products have many built-in tools and features to help you secure your information, your Web sites, and your data.

• Best practices to help prevent spam
• Best practices for protection from viruses
• Check for Office updates
• Online training: Learn how to help protect yourself with security features in Office
• Virus alerts

Information on password protection and cryptography

Learn what it means to create a strong password, how digital certificates and signatures can be used to ensure trust, and ways to help determine if a macro is safe.

• How To Create Stronger Passwords
• Learn about digital signatures and where to get them
• Find out about macro security levels
• Troubleshoot modifying the list of trusted publishers for macros

Security information specific to products

Read more about security efforts in each of the Office products.

Outlook

• How Outlook helps to protect your computer from viruses
• About certificates and cryptographic e-mail messaging in Outlook
• Attachment file types blocked by Outlook
• Troubleshoot e-mail security

Word

• Protect a document from unauthorized changes

Excel

• Change protection or passwords in Excel
• About macro security in Excel

Access

• Make an Access file more secure

PowerPoint

• Require a password to open or change a presentation

FrontPage

• FrontPage security: Best practices

Visio

• About locking shapes and preventing changes to files

Project

• Helping protect your project from unauthorized access

Publisher

• Help protect Publisher files stored on a network

InfoPath

• Help protect your form's design

OneNote

• About helping protect files from macro viruses