I was just thinkin'....

[darkoshi]

A recent security update applied on my work computer makes it so that now after booting, I have to press CTRL ALT DELETE before getting the screen with the button that takes me to the login page. Similar to how it used to be on XP.

Remote desktop programs have commands for sending CTRL ALT DELETE. So how does this make it more secure? To make it harder for criminals who only have one finger?

Comments

[andrewducker]

Because it means that another program cannot be sitting there pretending to be a login screen - ctrl-alt-delete cannot be intercepted by applications, so pressing it takes you to an OS-dependent screen instead.

[darkoshi]

That explains it. I didn't realize that the key combination couldn't be captured by other apps.

[andrewducker]

Some interesting history here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Control-Alt-Delete#Windows_NT_.28and_later_versions.29