Those are three words nobody wants to say. As a recent victim of a burglary, I can honestly say that few things in life will make you angrier than discovering someone has broken into your home and just taken your belongings. Since hindsight is 20/20, let’s go over a few things that you can do to help prevent situations like that.... or at least get on a fast track to catching the thief.
First things first, let’s make a scenario: You return home from a long day at work, put the key in the lock, turn the knob, and walk into your home the same way you have done for years. But something is wrong. Your television is gone, your DVD player is gone, your game console, stereo, and all your high end electronics have vanished! But what is even worse, and what should scare the hell out of you.... your computer is missing too. Now let me ask you... what have you lost? Let’s think about his for just a second. All physical objects can be replaced. The TV, stereo, and laptop can all be replaced as soon as you go buy them, but the TV and stereo do not have any of your information stored in them. Your computer on the other hand... has your entire life story. What can you do now?
Well, to get the no-brainer out of the way, you should not only install a home security system, but you should USE IT as well. I’ve known people that have a system installed in their home but either don’t arm it when they leave or have stopped paying for a monitoring service. This is probably the most effective theft deterrent out there, but I’m sure you already knew that so I’ll move on.
Let’s say you don’t have or can’t afford a security system, or more likely, you are a renter. What can YOU do to protect your stuff? You can start by being a little OCD. Start an inventory list with the make, model and serial numbers of all your electronics, and update it with new purchases. If you put jewelry or other items that don’t have serial numbers on your list, think about including a photo. Keep in mind that where you keep the file is just as important as what you have listed on it. A detailed inventory list does no good if you no longer have the list, right? Google Docs keeps all my personal files, and I am able to access them from any computer connected to the internet, so I can add, edit, and print from anywhere. Dropbox is another alternative to keep files, as is Microsoft’s cloud storage. There are many other options out there, so find the one that works best for you.
Now you have your detailed list of everything you own and it’s stored in a safe place. That’s great, but that’s only so you know what is missing, you still have no idea who did it. PreyProject is a great piece of software. When initiated, it can find the IP address of where your computer is along with nearby Wifi connections, as well as take a picture of the person using your computer and even lock it so no one can access your information. This is great for anyone that has a laptop. You can install Prey onto desktops also, but the lack of a built-in webcam will make it hard to get a pic of the perp. Now what you should do, and what I neglected to do, is to TEST it. Mark the computer as missing and make sure that you get a report in the next 10 minutes or so. If you don’t, then you need to find out why. I didn’t do this, and now a thief is hanging on to my laptop instead of prison bars. Believe me, I will not make that mistake again. Make sure you turn off the Missing button or else you’ll run though your free 10 reports. *EDIT: with the free version of PreyProject, your account can hold only 10 reports AT A TIME. Meaning, you can get hundreds of reports but you will only have access to the 10 most current ones. So test away!* If you are using a Mac, then give Hidden a shot, as it’s worth its weight in gold to this guy.
There are other programs that will use your webcam as a motion detector, and will alert you to when there is movement. There are possible hundreds of these types of programs out there, so you’ll need to do your own research on that. How I found out that my laptop was missing was by a remote access program called Teamviewer. I logged in to my computer and saw that someone with username koler57 was watching a YouTube video on MY laptop. Unfortunately, Teamviewer doesn’t alert you when your PC goes missing... it was just dumb luck that I logged in when the thief was on it.
For those of you that would like some security on your smartphone, try Lookout. You can lock and wipe your phone remotely, as well as make it scream so it will get the attention of people nearby if you’ve lost it. You can also track its location via Google Maps. Lookout is available for Android, Blackberry, and Windows phones. Another app that does all of this and a little more is SeekDroid. An Android only app that you can find in the Android Market for $.99.
So now your stuff is in the hands of a lazy bastard that would rather take your things than go get a job. How do you get your files back? Unless you had a backup off-site similar to your inventory list... you can’t. Thankfully, I didn’t lose too much in the burglary as most of what I had was backed up online. Pictures were saved in Picasa, documents were in Google Docs, all music was backed up in Google Music Beta (still a closed Beta, but with Apple’s iCloud and Amazon’s cloud storage, there’s an option for everyone).
OK, OK, OK.... I can see you’re getting that glazed look in your eyes, so let me start wrapping this up. I know it’s your computer, and you want to make it yours, just be smart about it. Don’t keep any financial information saved on it locally. The ‘Remember Me’ checkbox on websites cannot be undone when you no longer have your computer, so don’t use it. LastPass is a great password management utility that will store all of your passwords so all you need to remember is the master password. If your PC is actually stolen, you simply need to change your master password instead of changing it on every site you visit. Believe me, I would still be changing passwords today if I wasn’t using that.
Speaking of sites you visit, be careful of the information you post there. The most notorious one is Facebook. My Facebook page, as it has been for quite a while, is ‘Friends Only’. Meaning if I haven’t given my permission for you to see my info, you can’t see it. I could go on and on, but Lifehacker just made a post about taking control of your Facebook security features. Go read it.
So I guess that’s it. Just be smart. Ask yourself, if I lost my PC tomorrow, what would I lose? Then take steps to fix it. I know I will.
I'd love to hear your feedback. Let me know what you use for security.
First things first, let’s make a scenario: You return home from a long day at work, put the key in the lock, turn the knob, and walk into your home the same way you have done for years. But something is wrong. Your television is gone, your DVD player is gone, your game console, stereo, and all your high end electronics have vanished! But what is even worse, and what should scare the hell out of you.... your computer is missing too. Now let me ask you... what have you lost? Let’s think about his for just a second. All physical objects can be replaced. The TV, stereo, and laptop can all be replaced as soon as you go buy them, but the TV and stereo do not have any of your information stored in them. Your computer on the other hand... has your entire life story. What can you do now?
Well, to get the no-brainer out of the way, you should not only install a home security system, but you should USE IT as well. I’ve known people that have a system installed in their home but either don’t arm it when they leave or have stopped paying for a monitoring service. This is probably the most effective theft deterrent out there, but I’m sure you already knew that so I’ll move on.
Let’s say you don’t have or can’t afford a security system, or more likely, you are a renter. What can YOU do to protect your stuff? You can start by being a little OCD. Start an inventory list with the make, model and serial numbers of all your electronics, and update it with new purchases. If you put jewelry or other items that don’t have serial numbers on your list, think about including a photo. Keep in mind that where you keep the file is just as important as what you have listed on it. A detailed inventory list does no good if you no longer have the list, right? Google Docs keeps all my personal files, and I am able to access them from any computer connected to the internet, so I can add, edit, and print from anywhere. Dropbox is another alternative to keep files, as is Microsoft’s cloud storage. There are many other options out there, so find the one that works best for you.
Now you have your detailed list of everything you own and it’s stored in a safe place. That’s great, but that’s only so you know what is missing, you still have no idea who did it. PreyProject is a great piece of software. When initiated, it can find the IP address of where your computer is along with nearby Wifi connections, as well as take a picture of the person using your computer and even lock it so no one can access your information. This is great for anyone that has a laptop. You can install Prey onto desktops also, but the lack of a built-in webcam will make it hard to get a pic of the perp. Now what you should do, and what I neglected to do, is to TEST it. Mark the computer as missing and make sure that you get a report in the next 10 minutes or so. If you don’t, then you need to find out why. I didn’t do this, and now a thief is hanging on to my laptop instead of prison bars. Believe me, I will not make that mistake again. Make sure you turn off the Missing button or else you’ll run though your free 10 reports. *EDIT: with the free version of PreyProject, your account can hold only 10 reports AT A TIME. Meaning, you can get hundreds of reports but you will only have access to the 10 most current ones. So test away!* If you are using a Mac, then give Hidden a shot, as it’s worth its weight in gold to this guy.
There are other programs that will use your webcam as a motion detector, and will alert you to when there is movement. There are possible hundreds of these types of programs out there, so you’ll need to do your own research on that. How I found out that my laptop was missing was by a remote access program called Teamviewer. I logged in to my computer and saw that someone with username koler57 was watching a YouTube video on MY laptop. Unfortunately, Teamviewer doesn’t alert you when your PC goes missing... it was just dumb luck that I logged in when the thief was on it.
For those of you that would like some security on your smartphone, try Lookout. You can lock and wipe your phone remotely, as well as make it scream so it will get the attention of people nearby if you’ve lost it. You can also track its location via Google Maps. Lookout is available for Android, Blackberry, and Windows phones. Another app that does all of this and a little more is SeekDroid. An Android only app that you can find in the Android Market for $.99.
So now your stuff is in the hands of a lazy bastard that would rather take your things than go get a job. How do you get your files back? Unless you had a backup off-site similar to your inventory list... you can’t. Thankfully, I didn’t lose too much in the burglary as most of what I had was backed up online. Pictures were saved in Picasa, documents were in Google Docs, all music was backed up in Google Music Beta (still a closed Beta, but with Apple’s iCloud and Amazon’s cloud storage, there’s an option for everyone).
OK, OK, OK.... I can see you’re getting that glazed look in your eyes, so let me start wrapping this up. I know it’s your computer, and you want to make it yours, just be smart about it. Don’t keep any financial information saved on it locally. The ‘Remember Me’ checkbox on websites cannot be undone when you no longer have your computer, so don’t use it. LastPass is a great password management utility that will store all of your passwords so all you need to remember is the master password. If your PC is actually stolen, you simply need to change your master password instead of changing it on every site you visit. Believe me, I would still be changing passwords today if I wasn’t using that.
Speaking of sites you visit, be careful of the information you post there. The most notorious one is Facebook. My Facebook page, as it has been for quite a while, is ‘Friends Only’. Meaning if I haven’t given my permission for you to see my info, you can’t see it. I could go on and on, but Lifehacker just made a post about taking control of your Facebook security features. Go read it.
So I guess that’s it. Just be smart. Ask yourself, if I lost my PC tomorrow, what would I lose? Then take steps to fix it. I know I will.
I'd love to hear your feedback. Let me know what you use for security.
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