Comments on: Microsoft security zaps laptop tracer

Windows OneCare Live has been found to disable Absolute Software's Computrace LoJack software.

[aemarques]

That's why...

... this software is in beta. The idea is precisely to detect any problems before version 1.0.

[Mister C]

Any by version 12.1 . . .

They will have the current bugs worked out. Of course by the then they will have a whole new assortment of problems but hey, that's what those monthly updates are for. What is it they say about the soup sandwich? :)

[Phillep]

Great

Now that they know it can be done, how long before laptop thieves start installing something to disable both in every laptop they steal?

Laptops need a ROM in the modem to deal with this. (Idea released to anyone who wants to develop it.)

[deylat2]

Peace is good

It doesn'thappen often in this sue- happy society but thisis an exampleof fair and fruitful cooperation between software companies and that iswhat should always happen unless a predatory software geek decides todestroy a company or program he/she views as annoying byhaving succeeded

[Michael Grogan]

Twothings strike me on this

First, anyone with half a clue who steals a laptop will immediately wipe the hard drive and start fresh. Lojack is junk. Second, I'm soooo glad they finally told us where the security co.s spend all their money. It's obviously not on quality product : )

[Mister C]

Well maybe . .

I don't think people who steal laptops would know how to completely wipe a drive. Format or even Fdisk will not do it. That is, assuming the people who wrote it know what they are doing. Oops! In this case Format will probably do the job. ;)

[Mister C]

Doh!

Did anybody really expect them to get it right?

[technewsjunkie]

Duh, not Doh!

Duh.

[sancat]

such a coincidence - another vendor security software is rendered useless

Microsoft, legendary for taking advantage of their market position, with strategies of dubious legality, is trying to elbow another vendor out of the market.
M$ also wants to offer the notebook tracking service, which will allow them to spill-over many other "benefits" for the user.
Lets not be naive that this "bug" wasnt planned.

[mhex]

Thats funny.

Obviously most of the 'opportunistic' thieves that are most likely to steal aren't that smart. They usually have some kind of criminal record already. The best thing that you can do is to keep a good eye on your laptop. The 2 main places that laptop thieves frequent are airports and hotels. You just have to be aware of your surroundings. Just don't let the thing out of your sight.

I have had many friends complain that they have had their laptops stolen from their car. Well duh don't leave the bag out in the open; put it in the trunk.

While in your hotel room use a kensington cable. Usually I wrap mine around the TV and then try to stuff it in a drawer. That way it is hidden and someone would have to remove the TV to steal it. And most TVs in hotels have alarms on them that will alert the hotel staff to possible theft of their property.

All of this aside a strong encryption program such as PGP is the only read defence against theft of your data. By using commercially available tools I could backup the data using Norton Ghost from the CD-ROM drive. And then I could just load the hard drive image into VMware with networking turned off. And then I could just reformat the laptop hard drive.