How Do You Secure Your Laptop* in Public?

[Joe]

I put an asterisk after "laptop" because I want to use the term very broadly to include laptops, notebooks, netbooks, tablet PCs, etc.

"In public" means taking your computer to a place like Starbucks to use their wi-fi.

Suppose nature calls while you are in Starbucks and you have to go to the bathroom. What do you do about your laptop*? Just leave it on the table? Have a cable lock securing it to a table leg? Take it in to the bathroom with you? Look around, find someone who looks like they have an honest face, and ask them to watch it for you? Something else? What do you do?

Before I got my laptop, I was warned that leaving it around was like leaving a wad of cash on the table. Someone would be likely to pick it up and walk away with it.

I ask this question because two women in recent days have asked me to watch their stuff. One asked me to watch her tablet while she went to the restroom; the other asked me to watch her laptop while she went out to fetch something from her car.

I typically unplug my laptop from the charger and take it with me to the restroom. Those fold-down baby-changing tables they have in many bathrooms nowadays make great "shelves" for holding your laptop while you use the toilet.

But I'm thinking I might be better off buying one of those cable locks and chaining the laptop to a table.

What do you do? What do you think?

 

[beancounter]

Chain it with a cablle lock. Peace of mind.

 

[Amy SF]

Just thought I'd mention that not every restroom has a place to put down your laptop.

I've yet to take my laptop with me when I go to a public place like Starbucks, but the day I got it, I was at my sister's house learning how to use it, since it was my first laptop. She showed me how to connect her cable lock to it so the laptop would be secure, but it looked complicated to set up, like I needed a degree in engineering to figure it out. I subsequently bought my own cable lock which I keep in my computer bag, but I'm nervous that if I tried to use it in public, I'll mess up and not do it right.

 

[Second Summer]

When I travel with a laptop I usually carry it in a backpack. I don't have a lock. Well, I have one at work, but don't tend to travel with it. So the backpack will have to come with me wherever I go, and it has a strap that can be used to hang it e.g. door knobs if need be.

 

[shyvas]

I don't have a laptop but if I did, I would certainly take it with me wherever I went. No locks are theft proof and I don't trust people to look after valuables.

 

[beanstew]

If I was on my own I would take my device with me if leaving the table for any reason. I am normally with friends when in a cafe or bar though so would just ask them to keep an eye on it.

I am more worried about network security when using WiFi in public places so always use a VPN.

 

[Calliegirl]

If I'm alone, where I go, my laptop goes. If I'm with a writing group, then I just leave it on the table with them.

 

[Second Summer]

I am more worried about network security when using WiFi in public places so always use a VPN.

Do you get VPN through your job, or is it something you pay for, or is there somehow a usable/working free VPN solutiuon?

 

[beancounter]

I'd like to emphasize that I just leave my laptop secured with a cable lock unattended for hours on end. It's only if I have to use the bathroom or are otherwise preoccupied for a few minutes. If I know I won't be back for an extended period of time, I take the laptop with me.

 

[Pirate]

I haven't been out in public with my laptop for years. But when I did I'd always take it to the toilet with me. Case has strap and most places for ladies have a hook behind the door to hang bags on.

 

[beanstew]

Do you get VPN through your job, or is it something you pay for, or is there somehow a usable/working free VPN solutiuon?

I run an OpenVPN service myself on a cheap ($5 per month) VPS that I run a few other services on. Both the server software and the Android client are open source. It works very well. I also have a server running on my DSL router at home.

I've tried using IPSec using strongSwan on the server and both the standard Android network stack and strongSwan for Android which is great when it works but it doesn't always play nicely with the NAT and routers often encountered in the wild. I use IPSec for a link between my home network and the VPS which is rock solid.

 

[Clueless Git]

I don't have a lap top.

If I did I'd superglue it to the table and make a fortune posting videos on youtube of people trying to pick it up.

 

[Amy SF]

I don't have a lap top.

If I did I'd superglue it to the table and make a fortune posting videos on youtube of people trying to pick it up.

That would be an interesting social experiment, seriously. Superglue a laptop to a table in a Starbucks or a similar venue, set up a hidden camera, see how many seconds it takes for someone to try to make off with it. See if a would-be thief continues to try to pull it off even after it's clear that they can't remove it. See if anyone tells the would-be thief not to take someone else's laptop. See if anyone who knows it's glued to the table will just sit and watch others attempt to remove it, how long they sit, and if they bother to tell anyone else it's glued to the table. And so on.

Of course the experimenters would have to bring in a table as the Starbucks would likely object to a laptop superglued to one of their own tables.

 

[Second Summer]

I run an OpenVPN service myself on a cheap ($5 per month) VPS that I run a few other services on. Both the server software and the Android client are open source. It works very well. I also have a server running on my DSL router at home.

I've tried using IPSec using strongSwan on the server and both the standard Android network stack and strongSwan for Android which is great when it works but it doesn't always play nicely with the NAT and routers often encountered in the wild. I use IPSec for a link between my home network and the VPS which is rock solid.

Pretty cool! Not a solution most people would be able to set up, tho! Maybe you could offer it as a service to others against a small fee.

 

[yakherder]

Place it in plain view, then take a concealed position about 20 yards away with a pocket predator (my favorite slingshot) and a handful of .54 caliber lead balls and wait for someone to attempt to take it... because I'm 'merican.

 

[AeryFairy]

It depends where I am, although I'll usually ask someone to watch it or take it with me.

When I was at uni, spending 12-hour stints in the library, it was really inconvenient to pack up my laptop, books, etc. every time I needed the bathroom or a quick break, so when I was alone I used to pull up Skype and call someone else who was up on video chat. That way, they could watch my laptop and other belongings virtually for a few minutes

 

[Mufflon]

I take it with me in my bag or backpack when I don't have a friend with me to watch the laptop/tablet.