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Laptop got stolen; theft protection for future laptops?
mechaThor
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Hey H/A,
So a few nights ago our house got broken into and a bunch of stuff was stolen, my laptop included. It was about 1.5 years old, needed a new battery, not really used, so I'm not too depressed over the ordeal. As I have insurance to cover it, though, I'll eventually get a new laptop, and protecting it from future theft is something I'll be looking into.
I've read about LoJack, which seems pretty reliable (HD reformats don't wipe the software) and it seems that if stolen, it will eventually connect to the internet. But, in truth, is the price for services like these worth it? Are there any good alternatives?
I'm aware that there is also a problem about the general security of our house, me/my housemates are looking into that.
tl;dr laptop was stolen, how should i protect my next laptop against theft?
So a few nights ago our house got broken into and a bunch of stuff was stolen, my laptop included. It was about 1.5 years old, needed a new battery, not really used, so I'm not too depressed over the ordeal. As I have insurance to cover it, though, I'll eventually get a new laptop, and protecting it from future theft is something I'll be looking into.
I've read about LoJack, which seems pretty reliable (HD reformats don't wipe the software) and it seems that if stolen, it will eventually connect to the internet. But, in truth, is the price for services like these worth it? Are there any good alternatives?
I'm aware that there is also a problem about the general security of our house, me/my housemates are looking into that.
tl;dr laptop was stolen, how should i protect my next laptop against theft?
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mechaThor on
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Passwords and stuff are good in the event that it is stolen and its made essentially worthless to them, but it still doesn't get the laptop back in my hands. Are there any good methods that can track a laptop via internet? Or is that in the realm of shady and usually ineffective business?
chair to Creation and then suplex the Void.
For physical security you can buy a laptop lock that essentially is a metal cable that secures the laptop to something like a bike chain. Should be able to pick one up from Bestbuy or another electronic store for $20-30
Yeah I'll definitely look into getting one of those cables for the future just for the extra physical security.
Do you think that the manufacturer (Hewlett Packard in this case) would give two shits if I called them and reported it stolen? I have the key for the Windows Vista CD and the MAC address of the laptop -- could any of this information be used to prevent updates/repairs?
Really though, physical security is just a matter of using sensible practices to avoid situations that are advantageous for a thief to have easy access. Don't leave it anywhere public, in your car, plain view etc...
If it is stolen from your house, then there really isn't much you can do aside from lock it up in a safe. Since that was your case I really don't see much you could have done. If you have to lock up all of your equipment every time you leave your house I'd suggest finding a new neighborhood, or beefing up your home security.
Having a physical lock and chain for a laptop is ridiculous. What's next? A solid iron-barred protective anti-thief cage?
Society seriously needs some cleaning.
It's not just America.
Most of the theft is just opportunistic. People get careless and leave things lying around. Most people are honest, but these days especially, people are resorting to things they would not otherwise do. Such as taking the risk of lifting some lonely electronics from a coffee shop table and pawning it.
B&E though, like the OP had is just random chance really. Augmented by home security and how approachable his house was.
http://www.mossberg.com/products/default.asp?id=3 ?
Cable-lock it at home is the best way, if you have a desk or coffee table or whatever that's sturdy enough to discourage the smash-and-grab, just go that route.
Vista CD no, MAC address possibly but they probably wouldn't be able to catch it as stolen unless the physical unit actually came in for service. And at that point you're probably catching the guy who bought it from eBay after it was gifted to the cousin of the person who originally bought the fenced unit at a pawn shop. You really need the S/N to make any progress, that's easily checked by someone with zero technical skills, ie 90% of pawnbrokers.
Can trade TF2 items or whatever else you're interested in. PM me.
Man, finding a laptop bag to lug the safe around in is going to be a pain.
Also provides excellent weight training.
Yeah, it can really happen anywhere, though cities have it worse just b/c there are lots of people in a small space. I never really had an incidence with it until I spent a few months in London, and someone walked out of our flat with my roommate's laptop, my broken digital camera, and a single juggling ball (yeah I don't know). Weird thing was, the thief took the one PC laptop in the place, and had to walk past three shiny Mac laptops to get to it. I guess PCs are easier to fence (lucky for me).
I wasn't sure if this is trolling just from this little blurb, but a look at your profile name confirmed it for me. H/A is looking a little tarnished these days.
In the mean time, I'll probably get one of the laptop chains recommended to keep my laptop locked up anyways just to be on the safe side -- plus it will be helpful for when we have parties here.
Is there a way to retrospectively get the S/N of the laptop? I was foolish enough to not write it down for a future reference, but I've sent it in a few times for repairs, would the S/N be on the receipts? (I would check but they are at my other house in San Diego)
It can't hurt to call the manufacturer (or wherever you bought it from) and see if it's in their records. I know Apple remembers the serial numbers of most of the bigger products you buy through their online store.
I'll give HP a call tomorrow and explain to them what happened, hopefully with the result of a S/N. Judging by the adeptness of HP's cust serv (in my experience, at least), I wouldn't expect much, but hey, who am I to judge.
If you do own the house and plan on residing there for a good long while a security system might not be a bad investment. How did they break in? If it was just a matter of an unlocked door or window then it may not be necessary to go out and install a bunch of bars and stuff to keep your windows from opening and what not.
Me and 3 of my friends rent a single story apartment/condo (I'm still not entirely sure what to call it?) part of a greater complex. Basically what happened was one of my roommates left the back sliding glass door unlocked so me and my other roommate who were out could get back inside. He heard the door open, thought it was us, and went back asleep.
Thus far we've just been more careful to keep the house locked at all times, during the day and especially at night. What we think made our house a target was that a windowed side of our house faces a commonly used walkway, so really anybody who was walking home from class could see the stuff that was inside, such as a guitar/guitar amp, etc. (which ended up being stolen, as well). Also the fact that we're college students and chances are didn't know any better probably had something to do with it.
I think that you can find alarm systems that don't require being hard mounted or wired to your walls, windows and doors but that usually means they're not connected to police and other emergency services. So they're really just something to scare people, that may not be the case for every system of that type, it isn't something I've really looked into, but dependent on just how far you want to go with things it's an option that might work for your situation as a renter.
Yeah I'm not sure if any of us are willing to pitch in to get a system as complicated as that, I think that just keeping our house locked will be enough to deter potential mischievous behavior. Also making sure we know everybody who is at our house when we have parties is probably a good thing to keep consistent.
If we hear of more break-ins in the area, we'll probably go so far as getting a baseball bat or something just in case they try and come in while one of us is home, but I'm hoping it wont resort to that, as at that point the measure of self-defense they will return is unknown and could be potentially fatal.