If a thief makes off with your laptop, you could lose not only a pricey piece of hardware but financial data, medical records, even your identity. More disturbing still, with wireless connections, your data can be compromised even if your laptop never leaves your hands. Here are a few solutions to consider:



Invest in a lock. Industry-standard locking cables tether your computer to a desk or other stationary object. Most cost about $20 to $70 and use three- or four-digit combination dials or hard-to-crack cylindrical key locks. More-expensive models may add features such as an audible alarm.

Register your notebook. If you fill out the warranty card, the manufacturer will have a record of ownership. Consider registering with property protection programs, typically offered by university police, insurance agencies, and credit card companies.

Install tracking software. A few companies offer unerasable programs that will secretly send a coded signal with location information to a central computer when the laptop connects to the Internet. Service starts at about $50 per year. Note that it works only if the missing PC is used online.


Lock down boot-up. You can set your laptop to prompt for a password before loading the operating system (generally by hitting F2 when you see the brand logo at startup or by using Windows' configuration utility). Choose a "strong" password made up of letters, numbers, and symbols.

Use encryption software. This type of program scrambles data on your hard drive. To access files, you must enter a password or plug in a "token," a device that decrypts files.

Consider biometrics. Biometric security devices such as fingerprint scanners allow only authorized users (those with fingerprint patterns registered in the system's memory) to use the computer. Some laptops, including models from Lenovo (IBM), Sony, and Toshiba, have built-in scanners. External fingerprint scanners, which often include built-in storage, plug into a USB port on any laptop. Some of these devices protect only files on the device itself; others safeguard data on the computer's hard drive as well.



Wi-Fi and Bluetooth wireless connections can be hijacked by passersby who want entry into your laptop or network for nefarious purposes. To protect yourself:

Enable encryption on your router. Turning on the "Wi-Fi Protected Access" (WPA) on your wireless router allows only Wi-Fi computers with the proper software "key" to connect to your wireless home network and computers on it.

Turn on your router's MAC filtering. Every computer on a network has a unique Media Access Control (MAC) address. By setting the router to allow connections only from your own MAC addresses, you block entry to your network and Internet connection.

Use a firewall program. In addition to using your router's protection, it's wise to use software that will monitor data traffic and detect suspicious activity. Mac OS X and Windows XP have basic one-way firewalls built in. They'll protect you from incoming threats but won't monitor outbound traffic. So if malware is already on your system or somehow infects it, those firewalls won't stop it from sending out your keystrokes or data. Third-party programs, some free, offer additional layers of protection, with two-way security.

Be wary of Wi-Fi hot spots. Clever data thieves can create "evil twins"-clones of legitimate, for-pay Wi-Fi services-so they can grab your credit card info when you try to log in at a public spot. If you must use a public Wi-Fi hot spot, you might want to avoid logging in to sensitive sites-your company's network, say-and limit connection time to a minimum. Turn off transmitters when you're not using Wi-Fi. A bonus: You'll conserve battery power.

Present a "peerless" PC. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth can be used in peer-to-peer modes that allow another computer to connect to yours on a one-to-one basis. Consult your operating system's manuals on how to disable ad-hoc networking. If your laptop has Bluetooth, the manual should tell you how to modify automatic pairing, discovery, and visibility settings.