theft of laptop

[RichB]

well just home after some laptops have gone "missing" more like stolen....

 

we wont claim on the insurance excess is to high, police arn't bothered at all either!

 

My main question is we know the serial numbers or the range of serial numbers we have over 700 laptops here and the one in question did not have a asett sticker on it.... (someone is in the s!!!t tomorrow) but if the police find it, how will it get traced backed to us? can it get traced back?

 

Cheers

[glennda]

first thing you need to double check is that they are deffo missing - not meaning to sound rude but i had a teacher on the phone to me 4 times trying to track down some of his "missing laptops" from the trolley. but it was that another member of the department had said the kids could borrow them for the afternoon then went home at lunch!!

[6Foot2]

When we buy laptops our supplier details the serial numbers of all of the laptops/PCs on the delivery note

 

Do you still have your delivery note?

 

Failing that I can recall an instance where laptops were stolen during a holiday and recovered before we detected the loss. The police asked us to prove they were ours so I got onto Dell to ask them for a duplicate list of serial numbers as delivered. It did take a few more calls but they eventually gave us the data we needed [bTW the police kept the laptops for another 3 months after this as the case was coming up and the might have been required as evidence]

[localzuk]

I know this won't help you this time, but one thing that is advisable is using UV pens to mark the laptops. Don't just do it on an open bit of case either - make sure you do it somewhere hidden, so a thief can't remove it.

[dhicks]

how will it get traced backed to us? can it get traced back?

 

If the laptops have built-in webcams you could see if you could capture any images when they turn on.

 

--

David Hicks

[round2it]

smartwater/stickers dont make a damb bit of difference these days

 

i am etching our postcode and asset number onto the laptops so they can not wipe it off

 

no one wants to buy a laptop with a dirty great big postcode etched all over it.

 

chances of getting them back are slim.

 

Only thing to do is do an audit on all 700 laptops it will be hard but worth it as you will see what state they are in and check asset tags against your inventory. you eventually find the serial number you require.

 

OUCH

Edited March 2, 2010 by round2it

[RichB]

Cheers guys....

 

DAVEP - how did the police know they were your laptops tho?

[DaveMurphy]

Had this same issue last week, an 8yrold and 13yrold traveller managed to get in via a fire escape whilst the secretary was in her office, she then went to the kitchen area and they went in her office and stole the laptop and mobile.

 

Informed the police, but since the secretary had an automatic login they checked her email, luckily I changed the password and got an IP from the location they checked it from... but the POLICE were like... yeah and they will be long gone.

 

The kids are on CCTV but they aint local

[6Foot2]

i am etching our postcode and asset number onto the laptops so they can not wipe it off

 

We experimented with our laser cutter. We put one of our laptops [which was definitely dead] in the Laser Cutter and etched the school name and badge into the lid. It worked very well. Some staff liked it. The Head liked it. We [iT Support] liked it.

 

Our Business Manager did not like it as most of the laptops on site are leased.

 

We did not use the idea in the end.

 

Might be worth experimenting with at your end?

[srochford]

 

Our Business Manager did not like it as most of the laptops on site are leased.

 

 

Got to be worth checking with the leasing company? I'd guess some would be horrified at the idea but I can't imagine most leasing companies will do much with laptops at the end of the lease so they're not going to lose much money even if they have to write them off.

[BandyQuill]

all of the ones we get in have 'Education Leeds' and the postcode on the top/battery/under the battery, and trust me, you cant get that off XD

[K.C.Leblanc]

We experimented with our laser cutter. We put one of our laptops [which was definitely dead] in the Laser Cutter and etched the school name and badge into the lid. It worked very well. Some staff liked it. The Head liked it. We [iT Support] liked it.

 

We do this, nice big letters.

[powdarrmonkey]

:: Selectamark Security Systems Limited ::

[Arcath]

one of my schools had a couple of base units stolen, and they where tagged with an asset tag. After 13 months the police finally gave them back to the school and the first thing i noticed was that all the stickers where gone, even the PAT Testing sticker was gone.... so there was no serial number on the case :S

[Hightower]

Had this same issue last week, an 8yrold and 13yrold traveller managed to get in via a fire escape whilst the secretary was in her office, she then went to the kitchen area and they went in her office and stole the laptop and mobile.

 

Informed the police, but since the secretary had an automatic login they checked her email, luckily I changed the password and got an IP from the location they checked it from... but the POLICE were like... yeah and they will be long gone.

 

The kids are on CCTV but they aint local

 

I watched that "My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding" the other week (the wife was watching it haha) and I find it hilarious that they said "Travellers have the best morals going".

 

Yeah, you can't sleep with anybody before marriage (as most are big believers in the bible) as it would disgrace the family name. Can't remember where it says in the bible it's okay to thief though

[Flakes]

we use a label printer and label every computer up with its host name, we put one on the bottom and one on the top, we also log every machine into a spreadsheet, with the Classroom, SN, PN, Computer Name. if one goes missing, we can hand over the SN and PN from the Spreadsheet.

[znova]

no one wants to buy a laptop with a dirty great big postcode etched all over it.

 

Really? In my previous school a whole bank of laptops got stolen, all with security etching. Guess what, after a week I found them on ebay! The theif thought he was so clever to sand the lid/inside cover down, he even had the cheek to post the pics which clearly showed something was rubbed out.

 

And guess what? He/she got away with it. The police just couldn't get his name out of ebay. He was certainly dodgy, all his auctions were hidding buyers names, couldn't pull his item on local search although when I found his auction the area was there, and he/she was selling only laptops/cameras/golf clubs. So slowly and annoyingly, 2 at a time he sold them all. I did contact him as a potential buyer to see if I could pick up in person and he declined.

 

He still has perfect ebay score!!! And most likely now he knows where they are will come and help himself again. Unfortunately teachers like the replacements much better(couldn't replace with the same model obviously so much better spec) so even though I wanted to take some preventative measures I was ignored.

 

Oh, and the alarm didn't work on the night...

[LeMarchand]

:: Selectamark Security Systems Limited ::

 

Had 30 laptops nicked a couple of moths ago, and been meaning to enquire about this sort of thing. Thanks for this.

[bertster]

This is bolting the door after the horse has gone.... but we are currently looking at several software solutions that may help in locating a stolen or 'missing' laptop.

 

Track down your stolen laptop – Prey

Prey is a lightweight application that will help you track and find your laptop if it ever gets stolen. It works in all operating systems and not only is it Open Source but also completely free (non-commerical use).

 

Prey helps you locate your missing laptop by sending timed reports with a bunch of information of its whereabouts. This includes the general status of the computer, a list of running programs and active connections, fully-detailed network and wifi information, a screenshot of the running desktop and — in case your laptop has an integrated webcam — a picture of the thief.

 

You may be thinking “but what’s the point of this program if the guy will probably just format the thing right away?” and you’re completely right. However, experience shows that thieves tend to look in stolen computers for valuable information, so there’s actually a chance you can catch the guy, or if they just bang it on ebay locate it when the buyer starts it up for the first time

 

Its also possible with Logmein (free) and IT-Reach (also Logmein),

 

Unfortunately, gathering about the laptop's whereabouts is only half the task. You must then decide how to use that information to recover the machine. Note btw that user might not be the thief. He may have bought the laptop from the thief.

[sidewinder]

We use Selectamark and Smartwater. Im dubious about how effective Smartwater is but the Selectamark marking really is virtually indestructable - there is nothing that gets that stuff off apart from heavily sanding the surface down.

 

Not going to guarantee you ever see the equipment again but it does make it harder to be sold on (of course make sure the marking isnt on some part that can be easily replaced)

 

It does make me sad ruining the look of shiny new MacBooks with that stuff though but its for the best

[RichB]

Cheers for all the advice been looking for serial numbers all day no one has found them yet.....

 

I am right in thinking if the police do find them, there will be no way of them knowing there ours????

[HarryMonkey]

We use Selectamark and Smartwater. Im dubious about how effective Smartwater is but the Selectamark marking really is virtually indestructable - there is nothing that gets that stuff off apart from heavily sanding the surface down.

 

Not going to guarantee you ever see the equipment again but it does make it harder to be sold on (of course make sure the marking isnt on some part that can be easily replaced)

 

It does make me sad ruining the look of shiny new MacBooks with that stuff though but its for the best

 

Really? I think most people who are going to buy a laptop off someone in the pub for £100 will know it's stolen and won't give a damn about a) a postcode on the lid or b) a bit of sanding where it's been rubbed off.

 

Unfortunately in the current economic climate there will be no shortage of buyers.

[sidewinder]

Really? I think most people who are going to buy a laptop off someone in the pub for £100 will know it's stolen and won't give a damn about a) a postcode on the lid or b) a bit of sanding where it's been rubbed off.

 

Unfortunately in the current economic climate there will be no shortage of buyers.

 

Agreed, but it does make it harder on ebay where the lazy thieves seem to sell.

The main thing is, its better than nothing. Its not going to stop it being stolen and it doesnt make in unsaleable, it just makes it a bit harder.

 

Personally I cant see too many thieves having the balls to try and sell what is obviously stolen school equipment in a pub, because a) the morality of some people would stop them buying it (as opposed to it being from a business) and b) theres a lot more local people (hundreds of staff and students) that knows what that equipment looks like making it more risky. But Im sure it does still happen

[Andie]

We use CRE Mark for IT. Pen and lacquer spray, pen in black or silver. I have written on top of laptop cases "Property of name of school postcode" in big letters. Am told it would take industrial acetone to remove this. Or probably sanding would do trick. You can't stop the determined theif, I guess, but at least you can make an item less desirable. We did check that marking the laptops this way wouldn't cause issue with warranty!

 

CRE Products - Protect your belongings with CRE MARK -

 

Company not VAT registered yet.

[6Foot2]

Cheers guys....

 

DAVEP - how did the police know they were your laptops tho?

 

Apparently they started some of them up and found our domain in the drop down list [they were on the domain, not standalone]