Credit Loan > Identity Theft > Physical Security for Your Laptop Computer to Prevent Identity Theft

Identity Theft Physical Security

Sometimes it is easy for people to forget how valuable the data is that resides on their laptop computers. I remember reading an article in Wired magazine back in the 1990s that related an account of MIT Professor Nicholas Negroponte travelling through an airport with his laptop. When asked how much the computer he was carrying should be insured for, the ticket clerk was taken aback at his response. Negroponte told the clerk that it should be insured for one million dollars. Considering the value of the data stored on it, which included products of consulting work he was doing for his clients, this was likely a very conservative estimate.

Laptop and notebook computers are prime targets at airports and anywhere else business travelers converge. Laptop thieves want your credit card and bank account information, and anything else they can use for identity theft. Even U.S. Government contractors are not immune. In 2008 the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) had to suspend enrollment in its registered traveler program "Clear" because the contractor entrusted with managing the database had a laptop stolen at San Francisco International Airport. Not only was the data on the laptop un-encrypted, but it contained sensitive information on 33,000 travelers that were registered in the Clear program.

Here are a few tips that could help you to maintain physical security on your laptop:

• Most laptop computers have a Universal Security Slot (USS). There are cable kits that you can purchase for $50 or less that thread through this slot and around an immovable object or other anchor point. There are also adhesive anchors that can attach to the case of your laptop if it does not have a USS. Use these any time you may have to leave your laptop unattended in a public place, even on your desk at work.

• For added security while travelling, use a device that clamps around your laptop and prevents it from being opened even if it is taken. This makes it a less attractive target for thieves that are looking for an easy steal.

• Do not leave your laptop unattended if at all possible, particularly if it is on and you are logged into services.

• Do not check your laptop with your baggage at the airport, always carry it on. Do not set it down at the ticket counter, nor as you are getting in/out of vehicles.

• If you set your laptop carrying bag down, perhaps to use the phone, step through the handle of the bag to prevent it from being taken casually.

• Finally, be particularly attentive at security checkpoints where you have to put your laptop through screening equipment. This is a real hot spot for determined thieves.