<p>Can anyone tell me how they secure their laptops in their rooms? I have heard stories of them disappearing and was wondering how students keep them safe when they are unattended. I know the dorms have desks, is there a way to lock the desk drawers? Any tips would be appreciated!</p>
<p>My incoming Sophomore D did not have any problems with her laptop security; but then again she was very careful. I think the ones whose laptops got stolen left them unattended or left their dorm rooms unlocked.</p>
<p>Definitely buy a laptop lock and tell your student to keep always the laptop locked up. Also, make sure you emphasize to both your student and his/her roommate how important it is to keep the dorm room locked at all times, even when going to the restroom. Also emphasize not letting anyone in the dorm that you do not know.</p>
<p>Thanks for responding, where did you buy the lock?</p>
<p>I seem to remember buying S's laptop lock at Best Buy.</p>
<p>You can buy one at the computer store on campus--
Penn</a> State's Computer Store
DS's dorm room also had a locking drawer that he kept other electronics in.</p>
<p>yes, that is where my S kept his football tickets, graphing calculator, extra cash...you just need to bring a lock.
He did not have a laptop but did lock his monitor (large flat screen) with I think a cable in case his roommate did not lock the door all the time.</p>
<p>We got this anti-theft product for my s to put on his laptop just before he started his freshman year in a dorm (also got a laptop lock). $26...I think it's worth the price..
Laptop</a> theft prevention, Laptop recovery, Asset Management</p>
<p>We also had that same concern. On the housing they claimed each room had a locked draw. My son did not and we had them come in and put one on. You just have to schedule and be in the room. We also had a computer lock but your student must use it. Biggest key is to lock the room.</p>
<p>You can consider getting Lojack for computers. Also, you can add your student's computer to your homeowner's policy for a minimal amount.</p>
<p>I never had a problem, and everyone on my floor always leave their dorm rooms open.</p>
<p>Before I reply, let me provide full disclosure: I’m the director of customer relations at STOP Security Tracking of Office Property, a provider of one of the solutions mentioned by poster toneranger. Also, FYI, toneranger has no connection with STOP, other than his/her purchase of our product.</p>
<p>While our company provides a couple of effective anti-theft solutions for laptops and other portable gear that is prone to theft or loss, I don’t want to use this forum for self-promotion. Instead, as the parent of two college grads who shared the security concerns of those posting here, and as somewhat of a laptop-security expert, let me provide a few basic pointers, which I hope may help all here avoid the agida caused by a lost or stolen laptop:</p>
<p>Never leave your laptop unattended in public places. This includes the student center caf, study hall, library, etc., not even for just a minute to run to the restroom. Campus police studies have shown that it takes a good laptop thief about 7 seconds to rip off your laptop. (In my view, a bad thief might take as long as 15 seconds, but if your laptop is left unattended for just a minute, he’s got 45 seconds to spare!)</p>
<p>Always lock your dorm/residence room - again, even if you run to the restroom for a minute. Residence halls tend to be very high-traffic areas, often with strangers passing through. How do strangers get into supposedly locked residence buildings?, you ask. Outside doors are often deliberately left ajar by residents who are awaiting the arrival of a friend who doesn’t have a passkey, or the pizza delivery guy. Talk this over with your dorm-mates to ensure that all follow this precaution.</p>
<p>If you leave your laptop in your room, lock it away in a safe if possible, or use a locking device of some kind. No security solution is impenetrable, but the idea is to add what we call in our industry “layers of protection.” Thieves want to work fast and without being noticed, so the more layers, the greater the chances of them being noticed-and caught.</p>
<p>Never leave your laptop in your car, not even out of sight, “cleverly” hidden under your gym clothes, and not even in your trunk. Smash-and-grab thefts are perhaps the most common reports we receive at our company. Again, a thief can break into your car and escape with your laptop and other valuables before anyone in the area even begins to ignore your blaring car alarm. It’s a pain to lug around, but believe me, it’s safer to keep it with you.</p>
<p>Essentially, treat your laptop as you would your wallet or your purse.</p>
<p>And oh, by the way, BACKUPDATA, BACKUPDATA, BACKUPDATA. Even with the best security measures and practices, laptops do get lost or stolen. Your college most likely provides ample server space for you to back up all important documents. And thumb drives are almost as cheap as chewing gum. A few years back our firm received a call from a grad student who had her laptop stolen from under her feet while she was on the phone at the airport. Through her sobs, I was able to determine that she lost five years of research work along with her laptop. Back up your data.</p>
<p>I hope these are helpful tips. The thing is, most of you are probably thinking, “well, nothing new here, I know that.” It’s not knowing about laptop security, it’s applying that knowledge to avoid the agida.</p>
<p>Thanks for letting me post.</p>
<p>Sincerely,
Doug Belfiore</p>
<p>I was wondering about this, too. S will be a freshman in the dorms next year and today’s students have so many small, portable valuables (iPod, cell phone, laptop). When I lived in the dorms 30 years ago our wallets were the only small valuable items we had so I just kept mine out of sight. We locked our door when we were gone to classes or out for the night, but when we were in the building we always left our door wide open. I guess that’s something that’s different now, which is too bad. </p>
<p>So my question is: besides a laptop lock, how else do today’s students keep their gadgets safe? I know they usually have these items with them, but not when they’re down the hall showering. Also, where do you keep your key when you’re in the shower? I know these sound like really stupid questions, but this is important stuff!</p>
<p>Me and my roommate (I’m a freshman now) always leave our room unlocked. Hell, my roommate’s on his second time losing his key this semester so I kind of have to leave the door open all the time. So far nothing bad’s happened, everyone on my floor are good friends, we always hang out and go to dinner and stuff together. But there is a drawer right on your desk that you can lock with a lock. Never felt the need to use it though.</p>
<p>Maybe my mind will change when something eventually gets stolen haha</p>
<p>I’m a freshman living in East right now and what I do is I keep my door locked at all times. When I go take a shower, I have my key on a keychain and I hang it from the door latch. The East showers don’t have any shelves, they are a cube with a door and a shower head. The other thing is that the outside doors can’t be propped open but there is a lot of piggybacking that occurs. Also, make sure your roommate knows that the door must be locked at night. There are plenty of drunk people coming back from parties that either can’t find their rooms or lived there last year.
As for my laptop, my room is always locked or if I take it somewhere, it never leaves my sight. Ever.</p>
<p>dukycn: not related to laptop security, but how do you like living in East? I have read on this forum that East is a noisy “party” dorm and not that centrally located. What do you think about other dorms- South, Pollack…or the special living options? Thanks for any thoughts!</p>
<p>Last year PSU police dealt with 439 reported thefts on campus.
[Alcohol</a> offenses, theft top PSU crime report - TILC: Excessive Drinking | Centre Daily Times - State College, PA | Penn State, Nittany Lions, weather, news, jobs, homes, apartments, real estate](<a href=“http://www.centredaily.com/2010/10/21/2285835/alcohol-offenses-theft-top-psu.html]Alcohol”>http://www.centredaily.com/2010/10/21/2285835/alcohol-offenses-theft-top-psu.html)</p>
<p>rocknroll52: Maybe I can help out, I live in east right now. Yes, it’s really loud. On my floor at least, on Thurs, Fri, and Sat night, your hall is going to be very loud all night until about 4 a.m. I’m usually out though and end up staying in South. South is a lot more quiet, the rooms are bigger in south, especially in McElwain and Simmons (Simmons is for Honors College kids). I would never trade East though. I made about 40 good friends my first couple days, all the guys on my floor are good friends and we always leave our doors open and stuff. However I have a lot of friends who are in South from summer session and they barely know anyone on their floors, they say it’s very anti-social and wish they lived in East. Being in East I always find out whats going on during the weekends and stuff.</p>
<p>East is pretty far from a lot of classes, but there’s a bus stop right outside East Halls and the buses can you get you within like a five minute walking distance of any class on campus. I’d say South and Pollock are probably the best located Halls, right near the HUB, down the street from downtown, and not too far a walk to West Campus. It kind of sucks having to walk from downtown back to East after the buses stop running (I think the buses stop around 2 or 3 a.m., I’m not really sure).</p>
<p>Oh, and lately theres been some masked guy running around different halls and creeping on people. Maybe a good reason to lock your doors although I didn’t read about him stealing anything. I’ll make sure to tackle him if I see him in my hall.</p>
<p>hey thanks for the dorm feedback- that is really useful to know. My D is very social so she would probably like East.</p>
<p>Pretty much what shogunzek is true, some floors are quieter than others, it just depends on the people living there. I know there are some special living options in East, and a bunch in the other dorms. If you aren’t going to do a special living option then you most likely will be put in East. South and Pollock are nice, you might not get in them. A lot of sororities and special living options have floors in both areas. West is next to impossible to get into unless you are doing a special living option but they are pretty much the best housing on campus.</p>