April 2005 — Applications
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Asset-Tracking Technology Helps Lockdown, Recover Laptops at Bryant University
In response, Bryant implemented an advanced asset-tracking technology from Absolute Software (www.absolute.com). “Additionally, we hardened laptop policies to put more responsibilities on the students and increased the insurance deductible to $1,000 per incident,” says Butlin.
Locks were also provided to students, and an increased effort was made to create awareness about the policy changes regarding students’ accountability for the loss of or damage to a laptop. These policies also included the legal ramifications of making false claims. By the second year of the program, and with the implementation of these key policies, Bryant’s efforts resulted in a 30% decrease in thefts and a 60% increase in asset recovery. Of the 1,500 laptops distributed during the program’s second year, only 10 were reported stolen, of which eight have been recovered to date. According to Butlin, we’ve even had success in locating a laptop in Cape Town, South Africa.
Laptop LoJack
When researching solutions for tracking and recovery technologies, Bryant University did not have to look far since their help desk team had already been using Absolute Software’s Computrace product for tracking faculty laptops. Based on the university’s success with Computrace, Bryant decided to provide a two-year license on all new laptops distributed to students.
Computrace works in a similar fashion to the well-known auto security solution LoJack - the stolen laptops are tracked by a code embedded in the computer, which is monitored by Absolute Software. Specifically, Computrace acts as a beaconing device when connected to the Internet; therefore, once a laptop is stolen, it is reported to local authorities and to Absolute by
the university.
Absolute then flags the computer information in its database and when the laptop is eventually connected to the Internet - unknowingly to the user - the client silently reports back to the database. Once connectivity is established between the stolen laptop and Absolute’s monitoring system, the tracing begins. Absolute works with the Internet service provider to locate the origination of the Internet connection, as well as with local law enforcement agencies to track down and recover the stolen property.
“This product has been an essential tool in our efforts of managing laptops,” says Butlin. “Advertising the product on the laptops has also helped to discourage would-be thefts. Recovering laptops is more than just saving money and time; we are providing a service to the students by being able to recover their data.”
Currently, the use of Computrace has allowed Bryant to recover the majority of laptops stolen, with the possibility of more surfacing during the life of the license period. The more time they save from having to manage and track their computing assets, the more time Bryant educators will have to focus on their priority: teaching students and preparing them for the future.
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