Computer stolen? Software has high recovery rate

May 16, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

It’s your worst nightmare come true. You leave your laptop in your car only for a few moments, perhaps to run into the local convenience store to get a cup of coffee or a newspaper. When you come back, you’re horrified to discover that it’s been stolen. Or there’s some kind of momentary distraction, and when you reach for your notebook, it’s gone.

According to law-enforcement agencies that monitor this kind of thing, computer theft is still on the rise, along with the identity theft that usually follows the occurrence. Our portable computers so often contain sensitive work data as well as our private information.

Information contained in PC checkbook registers, credit-card numbers and banking data are the things identity thieves need to make your financial life miserable for months and even years to come. So why treat your personal computer any differently than you do your other valuable property?

For starters, you probably have some kind of protection in your home, such as a safe or an alarm system. And with today’s wireless technology, there’s a good chance you have a GPS or anti-theft location device in your car.

So why not take advantage of some of the newest technology to protect your mobile computer equipment?

If you’re ready to add some affordable, state-of-the-art PC protection, then you’re ready for Computrace Complete.

Computrace Complete is a total system from Absolute Software that helps you to deter theft and recover your stolen computer equipment. Consisting of two main components, Computrace Complete begins with a low-level installation of special software that’s completely invisible to anyone who is unauthorized.

In fact, some computer manufacturers are building this directly into the computer on a firmware level.

After installation, the second part of the system is the monitoring service provided by Absolute Software. The Absolute Recovery Team is composed of people who work directly with law-enforcement agencies and provide them with both the tracking information as well as the necessary documentation to help them procure subpoenas and search warrants. The Absolute Recovery Team has a 90 percent recovery rate for computers that report in post-theft data to the monitoring center.

Here’s how it works. The Computrace Complete software is designed to check into the monitoring center once every day, although you can increase that frequency if so desired.

If all is well, then life continues as normal. In fact, you won’t even be aware that the computer has “called home” as this is surreptitiously done in the background while you perform your normal computing activities. If, however, your computer was stolen, you would have called in and alerted the recovery team center.

When the stolen computer does its routine check-in, the monitoring center will alert it to the fact it has been stolen and immediately query the computer for its location.

If it’s a dial-up connection, then the ANI data (that’s like a super version of caller ID) will display the physical location of the telephone number. If the connection is made via a broadband connection such as DSL or cable modem, then the Internet service provider will be immediately contacted. It won’t matter if the user is connected via a Wi-Fi connection, as that location information is passed on as well.

In any of these cases, Absolute’s monitoring service supplies local law enforcement with what they need to get the subscriber’s Internet provider to release the location of the subscriber, and it’s only a short time before they get busted.

One new feature is Computrace Complete’s ability to instantly delete any information on the computer’s hard drive. It turns out that many feel that once a computer is stolen, the information on it should be immediately destroyed.

You can instruct the Absolute Recovery Team to delete anything from a single file, a folder, an entire directory and even wipe out the Windows operating system if so desired. All of this will happen without the thief being aware that the action is taking place.

Of course, if everything is deleted, the thief will only know that the computer won’t run anymore for some unknown reason. Nothing will alert them to the fact that the computer has been traced and located. Nothing, that is, until the local fuzz kicks in their door.

I for one got a lot of satisfaction reading some of the many success stories posted up on the Absolute Software website. All they need now is a copy of “Bad Boys” playing in the background. For me, it was better than watching “Cops.” It made me feel all warm and fuzzy just knowing those slimeballs got caught red-handed with the stolen computers.

Absolute Software has all of the subscription and software costs posted along with descriptions that will help you to choose the right plan for you.

Computrace Complete is their top-of-the-line product, but you may not need all of the services it offers. If that’s the case, you may want to check out their “LoJack for Laptops” location system.

But whatever location system you choose, you’re going to feel a lot better if the unthinkable happens to you. Computrace Complete sells for $52.95 and includes a one-year subscription. It works on both Windows and Macintosh.

For more information, visit www.absolute.com.

Craig Crossman is a national newspaper columnist writing about computers and technology. For more information, visit his Web site at www.computeramerica.com.

2010 McClatchy Tribune