Lock your laptops, UA says

The person sitting nearby in the library promising to keep an eye on a laptop during a Mark's Café break may not be as trustworthy as he seems - and the Undergraduate Assembly is trying to make students more aware of that.

In efforts to combat a jump in laptop theft on campus over the last few years, the UA recently unveiled a pilot laptop-lock program in Van Pelt Library. The group worked with the library to provide available locks to PennCard holders looking to secure their computers.

According to the group's policy update and data from the Division of Public Safety, theft comprises 81 percent of total crime. Within that percentage, 70 percent of non-retail thefts are attributed to unattended or improperly-secured items, such as personal laptops.

However, few students on campus seem concerned about the statistics or are aware that locks are available.

College senior Lindsay King said she had used a lock to guard her computer in the past, but only when she was living in the dorms.

"I've left the library for a couple of hours and never been too worried about leaving [my laptop]," she said.

Opting for another strategy, College freshman Benjamin Kahn said he is more comfortable "physically taking the computer" when he takes a break. Instead of leaving his computer, he marks his spot with a book or some notes.

Engineering junior and UA member Matt Feczko explained that the UA hopes to increase the publicity of laptop-lock availability and make students aware of the need to safeguard their computers.

He added that the group plans to work with both Van Pelt Library's director of public services Marjorie Hassen and DPS to address both of these issues.

"If you look at the DPS reports, this is an issue," Feczko said. "It's one way for people to realize that you are not completely safe - we're not in this little bubble."

Second-year Graduate School of Education student Yihao Li, who works in Rosengarten Reserve on the bottom floor of Van Pelt, noted that only a few locks are rented out each day but also acknowledged that the program is still relatively new.

The UA can track the number of laptop locks rented out and has noticed that few students have utilized the program, according to Feczko.

But he said usage should increase once the group improves publicity of the program, or at least during finals when the library is crowded.

"People tend to hibernate during finals and will leave their stuff as they go to get dinner," he said. "They might want to utilize the locks then."

The locks can be checked out from Van Pelt Library's Rosengarten Reserve. Students can borrow one of the 10 available locks for a four-hour period and are able to renew online at the Libraries' home page. Users who fail to return locks will be charged $1 for every four minutes the lock is not returned.

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