Prevention of laptop from getting stolen

If i install a GPS in my m11x r2 ( no, i did not order the gobi WWAN), can i track it from anywhere?

I live in NYC and im afraid my laptop will be stolen if i go outside with it.

I know couple of people who gotten their laptops stolen in my college(lol i hope those guys get an life((the robbers))).

One of my friends laptop was stolen right in middle of our class session. ( all of us were in front of class looking at a computer screen)

please tell me the best ways to prevent it

Im thinking of getting a lock to lock it to my backpack and maybe getting a alarm?

please share

Also i dont like the idea of "software tracking".

 

Uhmm software tracking will probably be your best bet. if they're smart enough to get past that your laptop is as good as gone. Most locks used in laptops can be busted with a simple cylinder paper contraption. I've tested it before on my cousin's laptop lock. He was so pissed.

This is basically what the cop said when one of our laptop's was stolen at your computer shop business.
If they're good enough or willed enough to steal your laptops there is no lock or security you can get that will stop them.

He mentioned he uses lojack for his laptops/computers at home. Told us he never knew about it until his daughter's laptop was stolen. She remember it came with 1 yr lo jack service from best buy. Called the number, same day was found/located/retrieved. Since then he's went ahead and got it for his computer. Recommended it to us, except at $79.99~ per 4 years that would cut the profit too much on our laptops for sale...

Oh yeah the dumb people that robbed us were stupid and brought the laptop back to the shopping center were we were located (inside a supermarket, they have a little baazar)... The funny thing is they handed applications to a few shops nearby/were recognized and apprehended by the cops. It was totally funny. We got our laptop back luckily.

 

ooooo thnx for ur input, i will go check out on the "lojack" but i was also looking at cellphone chips which can possibly fit into laptop itself..for example: SparkFun Electronics - GM862 Cellular Quad Band Module with GPS

I have no idea if that will work.

 

Just the GPS won't do it because they only receive, not send. You'd have to get one that can talk on a cellular band or something. Otherwise, you need a way to send the data from your laptop to yourself (which GPS hardware won't do itself), meaning three things are required:

1) they have to boot up your OS (meaning they can't check it with a live Linux CD, for instance, nor take out the hard drive and look at it with an external adapted)
2) it has to be connected to the Internet
3) you need software to send out a signal to you giving the data.

Clearly if you don't want software tracking, you're out of luck.

Even if you change your mind, there are also problems with software like being in a place where it can receive the GPS signal, staying online long enough for the GPS to figure out its position, installing the GPS receiver somewhere that it won't be seen so that it isn't disconnected first, the fact that they may move between when you get the location and they turn it off, and probably more. But ignoring those for a moment...

There is software that allows you to do it. A google search will turn up lots of options. The majority aren't free.

But consider another route other than GPS for a moment. Your laptop has a webcam. Don't you think if you had a photo of whoever uses your computer, you'd be able to get it back without knowing where it is exactly? I'm sure your classmate could get his/hers back if he had a picture, given that it must have been a fellow student or faculty member. That's exactly what this software does: Track down your stolen laptop – Prey. It also gives the IP address, which can give a general location (but nothing like GPS tbh). I think getting a picture is a more viable route than GPS. Of course it still requires them to boot your OS and get online.

Now, I understand you don't want software tracking. Is that because you're afraid it will be used against you? The nice thing about Prey is it starts logging only when it receives word to, where it receives word either through you logging into preyproject.com and marking the device stolen, or you pick a webpage that it checks every so often (configurable) and when the webpage goes down then it considers the device stolen. Also in the control panel at preyproject.com, you can turn on and off what information you want prey to monitor and, if needed, send. Don't want it to store your location but just take a picture via the webcam? No problem. Just want it to take screenshots to try to catch the thief in his email account? No problem. As another benefit, you can set the laptop to make an annoying alarm sound or display a message once it's marked stolen, so, for instance, if your fellow student noticed it right away and it was stolen while on, he could mark it stolen and walk around the halls listening for it. I <3 prey

 

I guess you use prey, ill give it a try.

I guess i was thinking of 007 too much LOL

Thank you very much

one question, does this prey software work on a smart phone? Right now i think it will work for nokia n900.

oooo they have an andriod version MAN UR THE BEST lol. Creative idea about the part on the alarm thing, i can use that right away if i notice it missing.( but this all works when the laptop is turned on)

 

Get LoJack.

 

Yep, I have it. Can't say I've ever had to mark something stolen, though.

I'm not sure which phones they work on, sorry. They do have a discussion forum if you can't find that out Prey | Google Groups

 

I think the best way is: pay attention to your laptop and never leave it alone. Just common sense, hehe. Btw im from Argentina and im very used to those type of things (robbers, etc) lol.

 

Your absolute best bet is to be careful with your laptop, and never let it out of your sight.

Any kind of security mechanism can be defeated. Locks can be cut / removed. Webcam security can be defeated by reformatting your machine. LoJack can be defeated by reformatting your machine. Even the mythical GPS anti-theft tracking system you were thinking of (which does not exist - it is a product of sci-fi TV and movies, and not something that is practical for consumers) can be defeated simply by reformatting.

Your best defense is to watch your stuff, and make it known that you are watching. A thief can't reformat your boot off of their neck.

 

it's easy. but you have to make it.

use fishing wire or spring machnism to triger a alarm device that's portable or built-in your laptop. the alarm will go off once laptop is lifted.

 

you're best bet is to just monitor it.

 

does anyone know if lojack and a bios password can work together or do you just leave everything un protected so it can be tracked with lojack

 

the computer comes with a kensington lockport on the upper left of the computer

 

yeah but those are not all that safe those are easier to bypass then a series of passwords

 

There is no reliable way to track a stolen laptop. Any piece of software you install can be defeated by reformattion/removing the hard drive, and clearing the BIOS. Hardware based prevention techniques like Kensington locks can eventually be bypassed or defeated as well.

The best way to prevent your laptop from getting stolen is to be careful with it and watch it. Make it clear that you are watching your laptop, too. A thief can reforfmat your hard drive to defeat LoJack, but they cannot reformat your boot off their neck.

 

i know there is not a perfect way to track it i am just trying to figure out the best way without watching it 24/7

 

You can pretty much assume that any kind of "tracking" service is going to nearly useless for getting your equipment back from a thief. Once that laptop is out of your possession, you aren't getting it back.

To illustrate:
GPS-based location tracking does not exist for consumer goods like laptops (it is a receiving technology, not a sending technology). It also does not work indoors. But let's assume for a moment that those restructions don't matter. The best that GPS tracking can do for you is tell you where your laptop is. Let's assume it tells you that your laptop is in building 123 main street. What then? You knock on the door, tell whomever opens the door that your stolen laptop is located there. They say they have no idea what you are talking about, and tell you to go away. You cannot enter the building without their permission, nor search the building.

Or, let's say that you use some kind of software-based monitoring system that tells you the IP address of the person using it. What good is that? If you call the ISP, they will not tell you who is using that IP address. You could go to the police with the information that you have. But unless you personally know someone on the police force, or if the police in your area are particularly friendly (mine are not where I live), then they won't lift a finger to help. It is not worth their time to track down a stolen laptop worth less than $1000.

Once a determined thief gets his/her hands on your laptop, you can pretty much assume that you will never see it again. If you do, it will be because of a miracle of luck, or a miracle of dumb-assery on the thief's part. The only way to stop this from happening is to never let the thief get his/her hands on your laptop to begin with.

If you still choose to do your own thing, then get a Kensington lock. Preferably one that has an alarm or makes loud noises when you try and take it off.

 

i live in nyc too. If your afraid of your laptop being stolen then you must be soft.

 

thanks kent
based on what i have picked up getting insurance on the laptop seems to be the best protection if a person i not around
and kiwidaniel soft is not the word i would use maybe paranoid

 

lol dont be paranoid or scared. Not everyone out there wants to steal a laptop. And plus where are you using it? in the projects? -.-

 

hahah rep sent.

 

Yes, if you can get insurance on your laptop, then it would probably offer you better peace-of-mind than any anti-theft mechanism. Just be sure to take pictures of the laptop and keep all documentation (receipts, manuals, etc), and make sure that you have the model # and serial # of the unit. You will usually need to file a police report before claiming insurance, and the police report will need all of that info.

 

been debating on getting one of these for the niece since she always carries Bugsy and her laptop around with her.

here

i'm sure the security is a bonus.

yes, this is a serious post from a dog owner/laptop enthusiast

 

I used to work for my college IT department and we were able to track down a stolen laptop and a campus thief via the network card's MAC address. Basically, we looked through our logs to find his MAC address (this was way back before wifi, so we just had to look at the MAC address that connected from the jack in his dorm room) and then searched for it on the entire campus network. Before long, it popped up in another student's room. Campus security busted him and the laptop was retrieved. (they actually found 4 other stolen laptops in his room)

MAC addresses are unique to the hardware, so this method works even if the drive is reformatted. True, MAC addresses can be spoofed, and if the thief uses his own router you won't see the MAC address, but with wifi so prevalent on campuses these days, and most thieves not being smart enough to spoof, this approach is still viable.

So, write down your MAC addresses and store them somewhere safe. Type "ipconfig /all" at a command prompt (type "cmd" in start -> run) to list them. They'll be the "physical address" listed for your Ethernet Adapter and your Wireless LAN adapter. Then if your laptop is stolen, you can bring those addresses to your campus IT dept and ask them search for your laptop on the school's network.

This doesn't work so well in a "real-world" environment, but on a campus where a thief is likely to connect the laptop to the same network again, this works.

 

If I am not mistaken, that method worked because:
1) The thief connected the stolen machine to the school via ethernet cable, and not via WiFi.

2) The school had a reliable database that mapped network drop to physical dorm room #.

Is that correct?

 

1) yes, back then it was by ethernet cable as wifi didn't exist, but it doesn't really matter. MAC addresses are unique to the adapter, wired or wireless. Write down both of yours and you're covered no matter which the thief connects with. In the case of wireless, you couldn't pinpoint it but you'd know which access point the machine is attached to, so you could look for it in that general area (a specific room in a library or dorm common room, etc)

2) yes, we had a map, but any decent network, especially one at a school, will. Network admins want and need to know exactly who is doing what on the network.

This method isn't foolproof but it does give you some recourse once the laptop is out of your hands. Hope it helps!