I had a scare today, I thought my $4000 macbook pro was stolen from my car. It turns out it wasn't (i just left it in my office). But the scare makes me think I should invest in some type of antitheft/ recovery software like http://www.orbicule.com/undercover/ . This seems like a good idea, but if my laptop gets stolen even if they cant reinstall operating system( passwords) can't they just swap out the HD. If you can sell a stolen laptop for 1000 a little 100 HD investment seems good to me right. that would make my investment in the recovery software worthless right? what do you guys think? does anyone have any success or unsuccess stories. Undercover only costs $50 so it is a small price to pay for peace of mind, but I don't think it will provide to much peace of mind.
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Anti theft program
- Thread starter dwhynman
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Orbicule is not anti-theft software, it is recovery software. Most thieves do not remove the hard drive when they steal a machine.
IMO Undercover isn't a bad investment, but a better strategy (and free) would be to maintain better positive control on your machine (i.e. not leaving it in a backpack in a car).
IMO Undercover isn't a bad investment, but a better strategy (and free) would be to maintain better positive control on your machine (i.e. not leaving it in a backpack in a car).
Most criminals are dumb that's why these solutions work. I have had Undercover installed on mine since a client managed to recover his using the software. Thankfully I haven't had to use it personally but it's a small piece of thought. Mainly if someone breaks into my flat while I'm on vacation or something like that.
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Hi! have you considered prey project? It's an open source anti-theft software for multiple platforms. free for the first 3 devices.. i've never used it on a mac before, but i use it for my android phone. Give it a look first, since its free 
I have heard if Prey and Undercover before, anyone have experience with both of these and which is preferable?
I use http://hiddenapp.com/
Hidden App.
Haven't noticed any noticeable change in battery life, which was important to me.You can test the app from the website, it seems to work pretty well. Never used it in a real situation.
Hidden App.
Haven't noticed any noticeable change in battery life, which was important to me.You can test the app from the website, it seems to work pretty well. Never used it in a real situation.
Call your local State Farm Agent and ask for a personal articles policy. It is cheap, and no matter what happends it is covered unless you intentionally damaged the comp. You may be subject to a $500 deduct (location specific)but that doesnt matter when your Mac costs $4000 to replace. If the person you speak with tells you that you must buy a homeowners policy (renters, condo etc.) tell them you dont want it (eventhough you should get it if you dont have it). You may not insure tax, please remeber that, only the cost of the comp. Even if your comp is a couple years old its still insurable, just present the receipt with the serial number. The insurance should cost around $50 annual (rough guess, depends on amount of coverage needed).
+1 to this. I have a renter's insurance policy on my apartment for pretty much anything. $30,000 coverage, $500 deductible, $140 a year through Grange Insurance out of Columbus, Ohio
Does this cover things stolen that were not in your apartment like from your car or from school?
Under a personal articles policy and any homeowners with SF the property is coverd ALL AROUND THE WORLD (as long as it is in your care custody and control, not covered if your friend is borrowing it).
Trust me people, just call and ask about it, it will cost you nothing to inquire, just a couple minutes of your time i guess. Make sure you ask for a Personal Articles Policy as it covers for all perils. A renters policy will only cover the comp for the listed perils on the policy but the PAP is open perils.
Yes it does. It's an odd policy. It covers anything that has a "majority time ratio in the location specified within." Which translates to anything that is usually kept in your apartment is covered. Covers theft, non-suspicious loss, property damage from fire, flood, "earth transitions"? (earthquake? lol), non-suspicious accidental damage, and non-normal wear and tear. That last part I understand to be power surge, short circuit, etc... and not the hard drive wearing out.
this is a bit of a different angle but I have a program called iAlertU. It's basically an alarm for your computer and it works great. I don't leave my computer alone very often but when I do it comes in handy. You can set it with either your apple remote or by selecting it in the status bar. Once armed it just shows a black screen like your computer is asleep. But, if any of the following things happen, power cord in/out, lid close, computer moves, key anything but your password in order, or trackpad input; the alarm is set off. When the alarm goes off your isight immediately snaps a picture of what it can see and emails it to your account of choice. Not to mention your computer will force max volume and sound like a car being stolen. I've only had to use it once or twice but it saved me and the looks on the peoples faces was priceless.
+1!!! Totally forgot about this. I had a roommate with sticky fingers my Freshman year. Was suspecting him of stealing gift cards from my wallet while I was sleeping. My solution was to prop up my wallet on my Macbook touchpad with this (or something similar..can't remember) running. Now, it was pitch black in the room and it didn't flash the screen at the time. However, I suddenly had $20 less in Barnes and Noble cards along with the 4am timestamped black photo.
Got him kicked out of campus housing
+1!!! Totally forgot about this. I had a roommate with sticky fingers my Freshman year. Was suspecting him of stealing gift cards from my wallet while I was sleeping. My solution was to prop up my wallet on my Macbook touchpad with this (or something similar..can't remember) running. Now, it was pitch black in the room and it didn't flash the screen at the time. However, I suddenly had $20 less in Barnes and Noble cards along with the 4am timestamped black photo.
Got him kicked out of campus housing
That's awesome!!!
I'm not going to sell the program as a replacement for insurance on your computer but in a pinch like going to the bathroom at a coffee shop, around campus, etc it will save you the hassle of even dealing with insurance. I will also say its a fun thing to play with. Everybody I showed it to loved the program and thought it was hilarious. They didn't dare touch my computer if I left for fear of being embarrassed and giving me a great picture of them with a funny face.
How about if it's not connected to the internet? Will it send the picture the next time it connects to the internet?