What to do if your laptop gets stolen

First thing I would do is clap for joy that someone actually would want to steal this very old Dell Latitude that is about to croak! You would think that I have the best of the best, but you know how it goes…the Shoemakers kids always have the hand me downs. That’s how it is with Call That Girl and all our staff. We always get the refurbs, but soon here, I am getting a new laptop.

For those of you with laptops that you care about:

Prevention tactics:

Password protect your computer–don’t make it easy for the thief to get into your stuff.  Even though most thieves will just want to sell your computer without caring, some will go through all your personal files and maybe even look for passwords and personal data. Like most of us, we keep log files somewhere of things we should not. It’s very common for people to have these files on the pc, but it’s not safe, but if you think you can name it so the thief won’t know, have at it. Most thieves that steal laptops want the money they can get on the street for it or to resell it. It’s the hardware they are after (from what I have heard anyway). If a cyber thief is going to steal from you, they will do it online of course.

Back up your data!!! If your laptop is stolen, at least you can get your data back and change your password asap to the data backup company. I use Mozy for all my data back up and many of my clients are on it as well. It’s a good program.

Write down all of your computer’s information NOW on a peice of paper for safe keeping and insurance purposes. Keep the receipt, model and make and if you can get it, the Windows product key (it’s on the back on the computer usually). I also like to put a personal sticker on the computer somewhere, so it it’s stolen it will make it easier to recognize. Get a good sticker too, one that is hard to pull off.

What to do if your computer is stolen:

Try to remember where it was stolen, car, convention area, bathroom, conference room, etc. Report it to the building security and/or Police in that area. Telling them it was a black Dell will not help much, but having the information that you noted about the computer will help.

The building security or Police should report it to all the local pawn shops, but I would call anyway asap! Tell them anything that would help yours stick out. This is why putting a sticker on the computer will help stand it out in the pawn store line up.

Next up, prepare for the emotional loss. I had a laptop stolen once at my old corporate job and it felt really weird. Even though it was a corporate laptop, I still felt violated. I remember getting the call early in the am, “Lisa, did you bring home your laptop over the weekend”….Me, “Um, no”…”Well, we had a break in and your laptop was stolen”. Creepy feelings set in. Then I had feelings of “where is my document that I didn’t save to the network file share…oh yeah, on my laptop desktop!” So besides the emotional loss of the machine itself, you will miss the stuff on the computer, like your pictures, data, documents, taxes, music collections, etc. Everything will be in the hands of the thief.

To close: If your laptop is stolen, call police, give them all of your computer information, call the pawn shops and change your password on your back up program. If you have software for stolen laptops (many of the newer computers give you a free trial) alert that program as well.

Additional tip: Put the laptop in the trunk of your car, not in the passenger or back seat.

If you have questions, feel free to contact us! info@callthatgirl.biz

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Tags: call that girl, Computer Repair St. Paul MN, Computer Support, Computer support St. Paul Minnesota, Mozy, Police Report, Saint Paul Computer repair

Category: General