Best security cable macbook pro laptop 2013

[kipwheeler]

I'm about to move an old home laptop (Macbook Pro Late 2013) onto my office on campus, and I'm planning on drilling a hole into a desk there to run a security cable through the hole, then attach it or lock it to the laptop so it doesn't go wandering. (We had a laptop stolen from a teacher's office about four years ago, and I don't want to risk that).

Any recommendations on the best lock/cable device to buy and any commentary on ease of use? I don't care if the cable unlocks via a key or via a combination lock, but I am worried about how easily I can attach the dang thing to the body of the laptop without damaging it. (Your submitter is not a terribly mechanically inclined guy.)

Also, I'm not particularly worried about how tough the cable is. The cable is primarily to prevent casual opportunity-theft by passers-by. If a determined thief actually had unrestricted, long-term access to my office, he could easily take a saw and cut through the body of the wooden desk, so the cable strength or toughness is not a key factor.

 

[kipwheeler]

Hmm. Maybe using cables to lock down laptops is no longer a thing?

 

[New_Mac_Smell]

Hmm. Maybe using cables to lock down laptops is no longer a thing?

Most newer laptops don't come with a Kensington lock or anything so there really isn't much of a solution.

I'm guessing there's going to be some kind of netting solution, let me google a sec ... yeah it's going to have to be something like this https://www.maclocks.co.uk/macbook-...VdyyL_uxZ6W_t6NXcJqVM9dFRpRermXHvoaAkOu8P8HAQ

Does your office not have a locked door or anything to prevent to separate you from students?

Personally I'd just get a filing cabinet and chuck it in that whenever I left, easiest solution without faffing with cables and stuff. Alternatively you could remove the ground shield from the charging cable and keep an ear open for audible yelps...

 

[kipwheeler]

Most newer laptops don't come with a Kensington lock or anything so there really isn't much of a solution.

I'm guessing there's going to be some kind of netting solution, let me google a sec ... yeah it's going to have to be something like this https://www.maclocks.co.uk/macbook-...VdyyL_uxZ6W_t6NXcJqVM9dFRpRermXHvoaAkOu8P8HAQ

Does your office not have a locked door or anything to prevent to separate you from students?

Personally I'd just get a filing cabinet and chuck it in that whenever I left, easiest solution without faffing with cables and stuff. Alternatively you could remove the ground shield from the charging cable and keep an ear open for audible yelps...

[doublepost=1498617653][/doublepost]Thanks for the link. Yes, there is a lockable door, but it's in a high traffic area, and I'm the epitome of absent-minded when it comes to forgetting to pause and lock it. (I know myself and my own weaknesses of behavior.) If I could secure the laptop directly to the desk during the work week, it wouldn't be an issue.

 

[New_Mac_Smell]

[doublepost=1498617653][/doublepost]Thanks for the link. Yes, there is a lockable door, but it's in a high traffic area, and I'm the epitome of absent-minded when it comes to forgetting to pause and lock it. (I know myself and my own weaknesses of behavior.) If I could secure the laptop directly to the desk during the work week, it wouldn't be an issue.

I had a good think but I don't think there's anything that's not going to be awkward or unobtrusive to use. I was thinking like a lockable drawer or container bolted under the desk as the quickest solution. Let people know if you come across anything as I've not seen many questions on this and there may be others who find it useful

Put the Mac in this case https://www.amazon.co.uk/Twelve-South-BookBook-12-1104-13-Inch-x/dp/B0052MAI8U I have never know a student to steal a book!

 

[kipwheeler]

One other possibility I've found is as below:

https://www.compulocks.com/laptoplo...er-macbook-air-and-macbook-pro-lock-slot.html

The ledge-style lock slots basically are ones you can permanently epoxy to the bottom/side of the mac, and then you link into it a cable with a combination lock or a keyed cable lock--I just can't find any reviews of them.

 

[New_Mac_Smell]

One other possibility I've found is as below:

https://www.compulocks.com/laptoplo...er-macbook-air-and-macbook-pro-lock-slot.html

The ledge-style lock slots basically are ones you can permanently epoxy to the bottom/side of the mac, and then you link into it a cable with a combination lock or a keyed cable lock--I just can't find any reviews of them.

Judging by the pictures of that, it is super insecure. By the looks of it, it's using the same screw taken out to secure the device. Which is just a standard torx bit and would take 3 seconds to undo. Whilst it would prevent someone walking by and grabbing it, it wouldn't stop them coming back with a screwdriver. At the very least it would need a security screw, however you can undo them with a ballpoint pen and a lighter (Melt the plastic and push it against the screw head to make an impression).

Anything like that is going to need securing from behind a lockable mechanism to make it hidden. And it doesn't appear to have a secondary fixing point that would be inaccessible whilst locked. I'd give it a 1/10 for security.

Cases like this https://www.safe.co.uk/products/cl62-madrid-laptop-security-case.html can work. Otherwise I think a security net like this https://www.openair.co.uk/packs-bag...mdK147RJMpKmBvKMo_5SIgRt9ynOIJwOQIaAmqy8P8HAQ although not the quickest thing to set up.