Guidelines to Laptop Security

Laptop theft is an increasing concern for both businesses and individuals, but especially business sector is very vulnerable to theft as majority of stolen laptops are in the $3,000+ price category.

Fortunately, there are many measures to protect the laptop and the digital contents of the laptop.

Individuals may opt for a cheaper cable lock solution, but businesses should also think about preventing industrial espionage by using extra laptop security measures to secure the digital contents of the laptop.

Furthermore, if the laptop and its contents are very valuable, a tracking system may be in order to recover the stolen laptop.

There are several ways to increase laptop security. Below is a short review of the most common ones.

Cable Locks

Cable locks are an inexpensive way to secure the laptop from being stolen. The cable locks function much in the same fashion as bicycle cable locks do.

The cable is wrapped to an immovable object and a clip in the laptop, and the system is secured with a padlock. While this is a quick and easy laptop security measure, it is still vulnerable, much in the same way as bicycle cable locks are - the cable is breakable with a bolt cutter.

The cable lock has been a popular solution for businesses as the solution is relatively inexpensive and quite effective. This is also the minimum level of (physical) laptop security for home laptops.

Alarms

Alarms work much in the same way as car alarms. If the laptop is moved or handled without authorization, the system will give an warning signal that resembles the ones heard in cars (there are other optional ways to make the alarm).

There are many different kinds of alarm systems. The simplest ones are integrated into the cable lock, which, if broken, will start the alarm.

Other types of alarm systems use radio signals. If the signal from the laptop goes beyond the maximum range of the receiver (carried by the laptop’s owner), the system will start the alarm.

Laptop Tracking

Similarly to stolen cars, also stolen laptops can be tracked and recovered.

The most advanced of these tracking systems use the cell phone network (or satellite via GPS) to communicate the laptops location with the central tracking computer. This system depends on a piece of hardware, placed inside the laptop.

Another way to increase laptop security and track stolen laptops is via a software tracking code placed into the laptops hard drive.

The software, which resides undetected, will communicate periodically with a central system through the Internet. The software communicates the laptop’s location, which will enable recovery of the laptop.

User Identification

To prevent the stolen laptop’s contents from falling into wrong hands, there are several laptop security measures to identify the correct owner and prevent others from opening any applications within the laptop.

The most obvious laptop security measure in this regard is using the BIOS password.

More advanced ways to identify the laptop user are smart cards and biometrics, such as voice or fingerprint recognition software and hardware.

Laptop Security Education

Despite the fact that laptop theft is an increasing problem, most users are still relaxed on laptop security issues. Therefore, there is a constant need for education to increase safety.

Especially important groups for continuous security education are business users with upper scale laptops, the most vulnerable group of laptops for theft.