Three steps to a safer laptop

Laptops are asking for help? How to combine encryption software, detection software and 'conversion skills' to protect your beloved laptop and your important data?

Laptop theft has become a worrying issue in security. No one can forget the nightmare that happened in the US Veterans Association office in May. A Hoi's analyst recorded the data file on a laptop and took it home, midnight the thief broke in and quickly snatched away the laptop with information of 26.5 million veterans. Although this laptop finally recovered, the others were not so lucky. According to FBI statistics, most 97% of stolen notebooks never recover.

This risk is not small. Last year, 750,000 laptops were stolen, much more than the 600,000 in 2003.

The ability to lose data is the first concern, then the identity of the thief. All pose challenges, as well as an important mission for system developers to build a laptop security program in the right place, at the right place and at the right time.

In this article we would like to provide you with a cheap but effective method that can safely protect the laptop and data inside the system. The method consists of three steps: Secure laptop content with basic coding techniques; restore stolen laptop content with tracking technology and return the stolen stolen laptop, not for thieves with the simple 'kill switch' method. Let us begin with.

Encryption

From the perspective of technical people, there are two popular types of encryption: file encoding and disk encryption. Each operating system has a built-in file encryption utility called EFS (Encrypting File System). But this program is pretty bad. A user with administrator privileges can easily decrypt EFS files easily. Furthermore, EFS is not built into XP Home, often used in cheaper laptops. EFS only ensures data safety at the basic level before ordinary users.

Manufacturers' views also have two common types: hard disk encryption software and file encryption software. Depending on the level of security requirements and the purpose of use, you can choose one of two types of encryption software accordingly.
You can also use the free trial versions if you don't really need the extra features or the powerful encryption tool set of paid versions.

Search

Losing laptop theft is increasingly popular due to many reasons. There is a new "like LoJack" detection software, which gives people who have stolen a laptop a real tool to detect embezzled notebooks.

To detect, you must first install the software on your laptop. Set the auto-check mode to a certain Internet service one or more times a day when online. If the laptop is reported to be lost, based on the next service check, the machine will find a special guide to perform the detection steps. Usually, the machine will be instructed to send a ping command every few minutes to detect the physical area it is currently in. The next thing is to report to the police.

Absolute Software of Vancouver, BC has been patented in the field of laptop security. Its Computrace service is well worth the maximum price of this full service package of $ 128, $ 95 within 3 years. Cheaper is the 'LoJack for Laptop' service which also costs $ 49, $ 99 a year.

Don't forget that a smart thief can reformat the hard disk, reload the operating system, and delete all applications to your phone, family to easily remove tracing software. In an effort to prevent these problems, Absolute Software has signed contracts with leading laptop computer makers to place Computrance software on the BIOS chip in the hardware. Many firms have agreed with this idea of ​​Absolute Software such as Hewlett-Packard, Gateway, Dell and Fujitsu . Computrace functions always exist to restore the system.

Absolute Software's original patent is CyberAngel Security Solutions of Nashville, Tenn. This software is based on the idea of ​​combining both detection and coding techniques. CyberAngel's retail price is $ 59.95 a year.

CyberAngel software creates an encrypted partition on the hard drive. Anyone who starts the system, gives an incorrect password, can access it and be free to use it. Thieves will subjectively assume that the system does not need a password. Therefore they will not be able to view any encrypted files in the P: partition. The operating system only has to do simple tasks to prevent the partition from existing.

Only when analyzing the location of the new thief disk space can begin to suspect some things do not match. During that time your computer has started sending ping detection commands. Make sure the thief is still busy using the laptop when the police come.

'Kill Switch'

In some cases, the laptop is worth nothing compared to the value of the data contained within it. Owners at this time are often not interested in finding or restoring the physical value of the machine. What they care about is data. They want to keep control of the data on the lost device. There is a way to do that with 'kill switch' technology. It is similar to the transfer of energy a racing car automatically shuts down when the fuel runs out.

Transformation skills are at the core of Lost Data Destruction service by Beachhead Solutions of Santa Clara, California. Just like the search service above, a stolen device checks with an Internet service at specified intervals. If the service finds that the laptop has a stolen flag, the service will launch a series of 'pre-determined' actions. Some actions may be illegal. Service price for single user is $ 129 / year / machine.

As shown in the illustration below, activities such as 'secure deletion' will overwrite sensitive files (preferably merely deleting data), typically system decryption keys.

Thieves can pay attention to the operation of the hard disk and turn it off. But these operations will recover as soon as the system is turned back on. It can also perform many tricks to deceive other thieves such as reformatting the hard drive, narrowing itself to the regular reboot model.

The conversion skill can also work even if the stolen computer is not online again. It can identify its stolen status based on various parameters such as the amount of suspicious time from the last time it was opened, the system login error, and the disruptive signals. Really smart, isn't it?

There is no single technical solution for laptop security. But with encryption, detection and conversion skills, you have three real tools to secure your customers' laptops.