Love Your Laptop: Lessons From A Burgalary Victim Without A LoJack
August 17th, 2009 | 
Author: 
Did you know that you can get a Lojack for your laptop? I did, but like many who currently have a laptop, notebook or netbook I didn’t think anything would happen to my laptop. Heck I had three of them to my disposal in my house. Yet on a warm afternoon 35 minutes after picking up my kids from summer camp, I found out about not having a Lojack for my laptop the hard way. There I was pulling into my carport with a dumbfounded look on my face. I could not believe what I was seeing. My carport door was kicked in and my house had been burglarized.
Forty five minutes later, after the police had come and checked the house to make sure we could go back in safely, I found out that the only thing that was taken from our home was our three laptops. They were all located in the same room in plain view so it was very easy for this smash and grab to take place. So here is my curren t dilemma. I will eventually replace 2 of the laptops very soon but I am torn between what service I should choose to help prevent loss or theft.
I first of course investigated Absolute Software’s LoJack for Laptop. LoJack for Laptop is probably the most popular software because of the LoJack name brand it uses. I then went on to Awareness Technologies’ Laptop Cop and then a fairly new kid on the block GadgetTrak Inc.
What impressed me the most so far was Laptop Cop’s ability to locate a lost or stolen laptop and give me the option of deleting or retrieving the files I want. Laptop Cop actually records everything that the thief does. From every email they send or receive to the IM conversation they engage in, the websites they visit, and any usernames and passwords they type, everything will be captured. This information often contains personally identifiable information such as name, address, phone number, etc. Because this information is so revealing, it can be used to get law enforcement involved and significantly increase your chances of successfully recovering your laptop.
PC-Trak™ from GadgetTrak has an advantage because not only can you track your laptop but it also uses your integrated web camera to capture images of the thief and uploads them with location to your Flickr account and email.
One thing PC-Trak has over the others could prove to be the deciding factor is the price. While LoJack for Laptops and Laptop Cop have annual service fees around $50.00 GadgeTrack’s PC-Trak is only $24.95. GadgeTrack is also the only software that is compatible for Mac computers. In addition to computers GadgeTrack has the ability to protect mobile devices like the Blackberry, Windows Mobile and GadgetTrak for the iPhone and iPod touch is now available in Apple’s App Store.
Regardless of which one I choose I am convinced that these security services for our laptops and mobile devices are needed. I do understand nothing is guaranteed to get my laptop back but I would at least like the peace of mind that if I ever lose or get it stolen again their is a chance that someone would be brought to justice for taking what was not theirs.
| About the Author | ||
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@jbrath
Jeffrey Alexander Brathwaite, aka “JB” is an Internet technology specialist who trains business owners on how to use web strategies to increase their customer base and boost their productivity and profit potential. He is CEO of 2 The Next Level, a web-based technology solutions firm that serves small and medium-sized business clients with ongoing technical, training and Internet marketing communications support. |
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Posted in Laptops | 
Tags: GadgeTrack, Laptop Cop, laptop stolen, Laptops, LoJack for Laptops, Lose of Theft of a Laptop, Mobile Devices, My laptop was lost, Netbooks, Notebooks
JB, I don't think I want a technology on my computer that's recording everything I type. Sounds like that's what would happen whether it's me typing or the thief. I have the Lojack on my beloved laptop.
Small detail I went to the website and noticed it is spelled “GadgetTrak” without a “c”. Great writeup by the way, nice to see an unbiased comparison.
Peggy you may also want to look at this page regarding privacy:
http://gadgettrak.com/products/pc/privacy/
Computer users should know that everything they do is recorded even without any application doing so. Every file, every graphic, every command, every keystroke end up somewhere on your disk drive. Police forensic applications can uncover all of it. Likewise, cellphones, GPS devices, digital cams, anything with a memory. All of it is recoverable.
Even deleting things will only mark the content as “deleted,” but the content remains until it is overwritten by another file. That overwriting is a random event. If the header has not been overwritten, the content of the file can be recovered to the degree that a given segment of that content was not overwritten.
The best practice is not put things like account numbers on your machine. If you use your computer that way, by all means protect your machine. Given the falling prices, these extra services will exceed the price of the machine very early in the life of your machine. The value of the machine itself will fall while your valuation of that machine increases as your content accumulates on the machine.
You should take a second look at Lojack as I think you missed some key features. I looked at the same options you did and I bought the Lojack premium edition on my new Macbook Pro. Not only does it do everything the others do, but they have a recovery team that works with the police and provides them will all of the location and user info collected from your stolen laptop. All the other services will only email you the info and expect you to work with the police yourself. Also, the premium version comes with a $1000 guarantee and on PCs (i have it on my HP laptop as well), the technology is built in to the bios so LoJack cant be delete by the thief..
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If price is the consideration, then you've made the right choice with GadgetTrak.
However, Awareness' product comes in the clear price/performance winner if you want proactivemonitoring and recovery of your laptops in a corporate environment – which is where Awareness Technologies' product is targeted.
While it's possible to get 'most' of the features of a commercial-grade product from something which targets consumers, it's important to remember that there are many issues confronting business data security – including the recovery of the asset, and the prosecution of those responsible. Often, insurance requirements will demand this.
I want to thank everyone for their comments on this Love Your Laptop blog post. I still have not made my ultimate decision yet on which service I should choose. I am leaning toward GadgetTrack but many of you have made your cases for LoJack for Laptops and Laptop Cop. Keep the comments coming. I will be making my decision very soon.
This information is so revealing, it can be used to get law enforcement involved and significantly increase your chances of successfully recovering your laptop.
This information is so revealing, it can be used to get law enforcement involved and significantly increase your chances of successfully recovering your laptop.