Police examine laptop safety

The latest wave of thefts across the country, and the campus, has been of laptop computers, according to the University Police Department. A statement released by the University's Division of Public Safety said that "one out of every 14 laptop computers" sold last year were stolen -- a "30 percent increase over 1994." "I don't think laptop theft is really common at Penn yet," said University Police Captain John Richardson. "But people should give as much attention to their laptop as they give to their bagpack or pocketbook." The most common thefts at the University are "crimes of opportunity" such as thefts of bicycles that are not secured properly,wallets and pocketbooks, explained Richardson. "Laptops are reported stolen every once in while," he said. "They are normally [taken from] inside a building as opposed to [a wallet] from a book bag or off of a table." The statement from the University Police also said that the Federal Aviation Administration has released a warning regarding the theft of laptops from the metal detector conveyor belts at airports throughout the United States. Travel suggestions are to carry laptops on the shoulder instead of by the handle, use encryption features such as the "bios password," as well as engraving computers with an identification number. Engravers can be borrowed from Victim Support and Special Services at no cost. University Police Officer Dave Carroll of the University's Victim Support and Special Services said that most laptop thefts reported to the University occur when the computer is left unattended. Carroll and Lieutenant Susan Holmes of the Division of Public Safety advise that laptop owners to take precautions. They suggest in the University's statement that users buy a cable that can be attached to the laptop and to a stable, a stationery item similar to bicycle cables for users who leave their computers unattended at their workplace. Safety cables can be bought at any large computer retailer or office supply store and also at The University Bookstore, according to Carroll. "Always treat your laptop like your pocketbook," Carroll said.