UK STOLEN COMPUTERS TRACKED Lancashire NHS recovers stolen laptops in an innovative way :: PublicTechnology.net :: e-Government & public sector IT news + job vacancies::

Lancashire NHS recovers stolen laptops in an innovative way

Four computers recently stolen from employees at the Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust have been successfully recovered.

Aided by laptop recovery specialist Absolute Software and its Computrace product, the missing computers were tracked and located, allowing the Absolute Theft Recovery Team to work with local police to recover the devices and make arrests.

Alan Boardman, IM&T security systems engineer at Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust, commented: “With such a high percentage of remote workers moving between different locations, we have to be realistic about the security issues this presents. Theft is unfortunately inevitable.”

“We decided to tackle this threat by implementing Computrace. All our devices now have in-built detection software, which has proved itself a brilliant asset time and time again. The recent recoveries were all found within a matter of weeks or months thanks to the software.”

The laptops and desktops were stolen from residential houses, hotel rooms and cars.

One of the thefts occurred at the Trust’s new premises. As soon as the thief connected to the Internet, Computrace sent an alert to the Absolute Monitoring Centre, allowing the device to be tracked and located. In a couple of months, the laptop was found in the possession of an innocent purchaser and was returned to the organisation.

Another arrest was made at a residential home, where a stolen laptop was uncovered in the thief’s kitchen cupboard. The thief was charged at the scene and found guilty in court. Alan Boardman was called to give evidence for the case, along with one of the theft recovery officers from Absolute Software.

Derek Skinner, Theft Recovery Services Manager at Absolute Software, said: “Laptops are candy for today’s thief, particularly those that store valuable information. It’s essential for organisations to have security measures in place to deter thieves and prevent the worst from happening. Our strong partnership with the Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust shows that thieves can easily be caught out and punished for their crime.”