You could try LoJack, never tried it myself but supposedly they track your laptop for you and if they don't manage to get it back you could get back up to $1000
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Protect MBP from theft
- Thread starter Shahidkapoor
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You could just use iAlertU. It's a nice little app that runs (if your computer is on and you run it) that uses the SMS along with keyboard and mouse movements to know if anyone is tampering with it. My suggestion - put in the side lock on your laptop and turn on iAlertU that way if anyone even lifts your laptop - a loud alarm goes off.
And I'm not the only person with access to my house. But I'm not going to lock my doors and then go around bolting down TV's, chaining up computers, and hiding jewelry simply because there's a chance a housekeeper decides to help herself or some punk puts a brick through my window. At some point you have to just live your life.
True, but this is a little bit different of a situation.
@OP, if there are any locks made for these notebooks that doesn't cause damage, as the first poster presented, then I would look into that.
There is another issue as well. 2nd hand computers are much easier to "get rid off". Jewelry might be worth something, unless they are fake. TVs and desktop computers have good resale value, but you can't really "steal" one without getting noticed. Laptop (especially small and portable ones) are much easier to steal and you can walk around with it tucked under your jacket or in your backpack and nobody will notice it.
Presumably you know your housekeeper's name, or at least the company she works for. College is a totally different world. Thieves know colleges are ripe targets full of careless students and expensive laptops, and they can walk through dorm halls and scope things out anonymously. The odds are just a lot higher.
A Kensington lock isn't going to stop a determined thief, but it'll probably make a casual one move on to the room next door with the completely unsecured laptop. You don't have to run faster than the bear, you just have to run faster than the other guy.
For better security, see if you can put a lock on a drawer or cabinet. Having it out of plain sight again makes you less of a target.
1. Don't brag that you have an Apple.
2. Don't keep it out. Hide it.
3. Lock it in something or put a lock on it.
4. Use http://www.orbicule.com/undercover/ if it ever gets stolen.
5. Lock your door.
6. Get some Dell stickers and cover up the Apple emblems. (Okay just kidding on that one.)
2. Don't keep it out. Hide it.
3. Lock it in something or put a lock on it.
4. Use http://www.orbicule.com/undercover/ if it ever gets stolen.
5. Lock your door.
6. Get some Dell stickers and cover up the Apple emblems. (Okay just kidding on that one.)
I honestly don't think so. A thief is in your room and sees your laptop. It will take him 1-2 seconds to cut/break the lock and walk off with $2000. Do you honestly imagine that he would hesitate to do so?
It would take a thief more than two seconds to cut through a decent cable lock.
Regardless, we're usually talking about a college student committing a crime of opportunity here, not an organized gang of professional laptop thieves.
I think it comes down to this (again) you're better off having one, even if it is the slimmest deterrent.
Yeah. When I was in college, it's not like I knew my roommate's name, or where he lived, or anything.
Seriously, lock the door - who else is going to go into your room? And how will they get in with the door locked? And like I said, buy insurance.
You're right, a cable lock isn't too hard to separate with a plasma torch, bolt cutters, a nuclear weapon, etc. A decent cable lock isn't cut with something easy to conceal, and if you must argue with me, my previous point stands: you are better off locking it to your desk than not locking it to your desk.
Hide it. People with access aren't looking for it. If they see it laying around and think to take it, it's a crime of opportunity. If they search your room for things to steal, then they've done so to others (maybe even you) and there have probably been complaints. Typically, people with regular access to normally locked areas don't steal because suspicion is always placed on them first. If you keep your door locked, this should be deterrent enough. I'm sure those people with access have schedules and I'm sure there are cameras in the vicinity. They will get caught and know it. A job is typically way more important than a laptop.
Instead of buying a safe, buy a security camera. Then even your big items (like your safe) are protected. You'll get a glimpse of the crook, and evidence for the police.
In reality, hiding it is your cheapest option.
Instead of buying a safe, buy a security camera. Then even your big items (like your safe) are protected. You'll get a glimpse of the crook, and evidence for the police.
In reality, hiding it is your cheapest option.
Hand-croppers (easily concealed in a pocket or sleeve), one second:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUKP8h3OSfw
I wasn't able to find a video of them cutting a more substantial model, and regardless, you're better off with a Kensington lock than without one.
locks aren't worth the trouble. at best, i think they give you a false sense of security, and perhaps some extra weight to lug around if you get one of any substantial thickness.
if you can carry your laptop all of the way from your home to campus/work, then you ought to be able to carry it a few more feet into the bathroom or library stacks.
if you are living in a situation where you cannot trust the person you are with then i think the answer is obvious: leave. find someone you can trust. otherwise, you'll have to invest in a safe and bolt that to your desk or something like that.
if you can carry your laptop all of the way from your home to campus/work, then you ought to be able to carry it a few more feet into the bathroom or library stacks.
if you are living in a situation where you cannot trust the person you are with then i think the answer is obvious: leave. find someone you can trust. otherwise, you'll have to invest in a safe and bolt that to your desk or something like that.
1. There is only one thickness of Kensington Lock cable, the one you just watched cut
2. No, you're not, as they create a false sense of security. If you wouldn't leave it there without the lock, don't leave it there with one.
I disagree. Locks and products such as the PacSafe deter crimes of opportunity, which most computer thefts tend to be. There are easier-pickings out there and most thieves realize this, which is why they look for unlocked doors, lockers, unattended laptops, etc.
When I travel I often carry thousands of dollars of computer and camera gear. If I am in a hotel I do the usual things such as leaving a TV on and the Do Not Disturb sign on the door. But having my bag secured to a radiator or plumbing fixture via a PacSafe turns a grab-and-run proposition into a much bigger deal; it also prevents hotel staff from rummaging through the bag.
In my home I have my gear stored in locked filing cabinets that once housed files at a well-known defense contractor (I purchased them used when the contractor took advantage of the usual generous "cost plus 10%" provision to refurbish its offices). Bolt-cutters can defeat the locks but a typical home burglary is done by a thief looking for easily-accessible items.
You can be fatalistic (or is it simply laziness?) or you can take simple and relatively inexpensive precautions to secure your valuables. And software such as Undercover increases the odds that your gear will be recovered and the thief prosecuted.
See the difference between this model:
MicroSaver® Keyed Notebook Lock
and this one:
MicroSaver® Keyed Ultra Notebook Lock
Also, while popularly referred to as a Kensington lock, not all locks in this style are manufactured by Kensington. There are other manufacturers that make a larger variety of locks.
2. No, you're not, as they create a false sense of security. If you wouldn't leave it there without the lock, don't leave it there with one.[/QUOTE]
This is ignorant, a lock is a big deterrent to most casual thieves. Do you leave your car unlocked everywhere you go? Should he leave his dorm room unlocked because the locks are easily picked?
Since he is in a dorm (usually with controlled access) in a room (certainly with controlled access) he is going to be dealing with casual thieves more than anything.
Ok, last try ...
Take ANY cable lock you like. Computer, bicycle, motorcycle if you like. Then do a search for that lock and 'cut'. A friend runs a security company and when I was considering a cable lock for something very casual and asked his advice he told me there isn't a single one that can't be cut by hand-croppers in less than two seconds.
Really. Do the search.
I used one of those locks in my dorm room, yes someone could break it... but it helps in case they didn't come prepared and aren't smart enough to figure it out.
I am not sure how someone damaged their slot so badly, I locked mine when I left and took it out when I got back. There's no damage on it.
I tend to just take my laptop with me everywhere. Otherwise, just lock your dorm door and hide it somewhere.
I am not sure how someone damaged their slot so badly, I locked mine when I left and took it out when I got back. There's no damage on it.
I tend to just take my laptop with me everywhere. Otherwise, just lock your dorm door and hide it somewhere.
Having used bolt cutters I can attest to the fact that they can cut through most any lock, although there is at least one padlock design that makes it makes it very difficult, if not impossible, for the bolt cutter to access the lock. And heavy-duty locks require a very large bolt-cutter, with handles around three feet in length. It isn't very easy to conceal something that large...
But this assumes that a thief will have bolt cutters on his person and I contend that most thieves who make a habit of taking advantage of human nature are not walking around with 3 foot bolt cutters.
It is a specious argument that people should not take reasonable precautions to secure their belongings.
Yes, I imagine someone would hesitate to walk around a dorm with bolt cutters. It's the kind of thing that attracts attention. Is it a guaranteed theft stopper? No, of course not. But thieves are looking for a quick score. If they wanted to work for their living, they wouldn't be thieves.
Especially when there are a dozen laptops on the same floor with nothing but a power cord securing them to the desk.
Hand-croppers - watch the video. These things are the size of a pair of pliers, and thieves do carry such things because they are thieves ...