You probably have sensitive information stored on your notebook computer and may not even realize it. The loss or theft means that sensitive or confidential information has been removed from your control. Who knows where the information will end up, or what it will be used for.
- You can take some very practical steps toward protecting the sensitive information that is stored on your notebook computer. Let’s start with basic steps and progress to some more complex solutions.
- Make sure that your notebook is configured to disable automatic logins into Windows, or whatever operating system you choose to use. While it is convenient to just turn your computer on and begin using it, if it is lost or stolen, there are no barriers preventing access to the sensitive information.
- Consider enabling the boot password. This is sometimes called the BIOS password. Notebooks using the newer EFI have a similar capability. This provides yet another barrier in the event of theft.
- Disable the default administrator account. Many Windows users do not even know that they have an administrator account active. Unix or OSX users should make sure that this account has a very strong password.
- Speaking of passwords, your user login (and the administrator login) should have a password that is complex. It should be a combination of letters, numbers and special characters. It should not be written on a label that is stuck to the keyboard. Yes, I have seen this done!
- Consider whether you really need this sensitive information on your computer. If you are in a public school, do you really need your complete grade book with student names, addresses and phone numbers on your notebook? If you have a small business, do you really need the credit card numbers from your on-line sales carried around on your notebook?
- If you determine that you really do need the sensitive information with you, then you should use file or disk encryption. Most recent operating systems have this feature built in. If you need or want more features there are a variety of 3rd-party encryption solutions available. Windows XP comes with EFS. Windows Vista has Bitlocker. Mac OSX has Filevault and can create encrypted disk images. If a more robust solution is required, consider PGP Disk or TrueCrypt.
The bottom line is this, the loss or theft of a computer containing sensitive or confidential information can have a significant impact on your reputation, or the reputation of your organization. Are you willing to accept this risk?
- Dan
