MINNESOTA ASSET PROTECTION INDUSTRY HELPS COMPANIES RETRIEVE MISSING PC's'Asset protection' industry helps companies retrieve missing PCsWilson Rothman, New York Times
Last update: October 18, 2005 at 7:28 PM


You don't have to tell Joe Leimer that the vast majority of computer thefts are inside jobs. As the information technology manager of Jubilee Home Solutions, which remodels kitchens and bathrooms, Leimer issues dozens of laptops to its traveling salespeople. Experience has shown that some of the computers will be lost or stolen; after "being burned once," Leimer decided to be prepared.

This summer, when Jubilee's Dallas office reported that a former employee had refused to return his laptop, Leimer activated Absolute Software's Computrace program, now routinely installed on company-issued computers. The thief was tracked to a motel parking lot, where he was using a free Wi-Fi network. Leimer, using Computrace, reached through the Internet to erase the computer's hard drive remotely. It soon was returned, no questions asked.

During the past few years, computer tracing systems have become vital to what information technology managers call "asset protection." These services can track where a PC connects to the Internet, and, with the help of a subpoena, translate that information into a street address.

Most of the services include a form of data protection, from password-protected encryption of the whole computer to data-deletion systems such as Absolute's.

Three of the largest companies in the industry, Absolute, CyberAngel Security Solutions and Stealth Signal, have enjoyed high recovery rates.

Crucial to the recovery is a company's partnership with law enforcement. First, the customer must report the theft to the police, then call the tracking company with a report number, the name of the police department and an officer on the case. Then the tracking company waits for a signal from the computer.

The computer reports in with an Internet protocol, or IP address, a number that indicates its location in cyberspace. The tracking company knows which Internet service providers possess which IP addresses. With the support of law enforcement and a subpoena indicating that the IP address is required for a criminal investigation, the tracking company asks the Internet service provider to report which customer was using that IP address at that time.

Recovery time can vary widely. Stealth Signal offers an optional 60-day recovery warranty.

These companies are devising more ways to track stolen PCs. CyberAngel has formed a partnership with Skyhook Wireless, which specializes in locating Wi-Fi products. As a stolen laptop moves around, it records the various networks it passes by, creating a connect-the-dots trail to follow. "We'll have the Wi-Fi security integrated before the end of the year," said Bradley Lide, CyberAngel's chief executive.

Absolute is investigating a different sort of wireless tracking. Companies often equip laptops with cards that connect them to cellular data networks. Absolute wants to be able to make "silent calls" to laptops via those network cards. The company then could delete sensitive data immediately and even download files from the laptop.