How To Secure Your Laptop PC

Read the full content of this Article: http://www.notebookreview.com/news/how-to-secure-your-laptop-pc/

 

Good article, I would only question the LastPass recommendation. I would be hesitant to store my userid's and password's in the cloud, encrypted or not. Personally I keep all my credentials on a password protected USB stick that I keep with me at all times.

 

Full disclosure: I represent STOP Security Tracking of Office Property, the sole manufacturer/provider of the STOP Security Plates you mention in your article.

Ms. Emigh, thank you for this excellent article on securing laptops and the data they contain, and for including our STOP Security Plates in the array of viable solutions your offer.

I'd also like to add a couple things to the discussion that I've learned in my 14+ years here at STOP:

+ Hi-tech software tracking solutions are sexy, and some offer a lot of great protection layers, but in my opinion, they shouldn't be classified as an "anti-theft" solution. They are usually designed to work AFTER the device has been lost or stolen. Accordingly, STOP offers STOPMonitor, a real-time tracking- and data-protection software solution as a complementary layer to our STOP Security Plates; we generally do not offer it as a first line of defense. Instead, we always recommend PHYSICAL anti-theft measures FIRST.

+ While we've all heard and read the dramatic stories about the police swarming in to arrest the thief whose image was taken by the stolen laptop's on-board camera, these are in fact rare instances. The reality is, once a laptop is stolen, it's really hard to get it back, even if you are able to engage local law enforcement authorities to put aside their other investigative priorities to get the necessary legal paperwork to hopefully find the thief and the stolen device in the same location when they arrive there. In other words, good common-sense theft PREVENTION is much better than trying to locate and retrieve your stolen device and arrest and prosecute the thief.

+ Caution: on-board Webcams can take pictures of the innocent as well as the guilty; privacy issues can be breached here (See: wiki “Robbins v. Lower Merion School District”)

+ However, while anti-theft software shouldn't be used as a first layer of theft deterrence, those programs equipped with data-encryption- and bootlock capabilities can be an effective way to protect precious data stored on the stolen device.

+ First, try to prevent the loss or theft with good common-sense practices. But if your device is lost or stolen, focus on protecting the data on the device, rather than trying to recover the device.

+ With prevention in mind, we all know the common-sense approaches to mobile device security, but we don’t always use them, so it’s worth a reminder: don't leave your mobile device on the front seat of your car, even if you're going into Starbucks for just a couple minutes; don't leave it on your dorm room desk, even if you're just going to brush your teeth; carry your mobile device with you whenever possible,and if you can’t lock it up securely; handle your mobile device with the same care would your wallet or your purse.

Finally, I'd like to address your remark regarding selling STOP-tagged devices: "...keep in mind that you'll probably find it quite tough to resell your own PC somewhere down the line over eBay (or anywhere else!)”. STOP offers lifetime transferable service, so once we verify with the currently registered owner that the device is free and clear, the new legitimate owner may re-register the device in the STOP registry free of charge.

Thanks again for the mention, and for allowing me to post here.

Sincerely,
Doug Belfiore
Director of Customer Relations
STOP Security Tracking of Office Property