Laptop Computer Security

[Jackson]

Thread Starter.

[FredCool]

Not really, there are ways to bypass this security feature, (password User name security feature) your common everyday user, or possibly thief wouldn't know how to do this, but those of us that do know how, can do it in less than a minute.Hi,

I like to give you some Ideas while mongering:

-Use SafeGuardEasy: http://americas.utimaco.com/ the only safe solution for your Laptop.

-Use for mongering a special Mobile with only the numbers from the chicas inside, the real phone is in the safe.

-Never give a real emailaddress to a girl (only yahoo, msn,

And when I say never I mean never, also to non pros.

-If they steal your money, take care that they steal not all your money.

I like all your reports, they are realy helpfull, and some are realy funny.

To over pay a girl is better as you get cheatet from a girl, on my first trip to BA I overpay a girl from Black with USD 300, the next day I was better in negotiation and pay USD 100 and now I be in the situation to pay sometime nothing. I am lukky to be not cheatet (yet) but this can go very fast when you get drunk and the night show you the pussys.

Suerte,

FC

[Tinman]

Getting your computer stolen is shitty enough but if personal information is retrieved, as seen in this thread, it's like being violated.

I have a lot of personal shit on my machine and don't want some boludo going through it, even if it's just one of my friends asking to use my laptop.

Truecrypt is an awesome encryption program - I've been using it for some time now and it's free.

http://www.truecrypt.org

It "creates a virtual encrypted disk within a file and mounts it as a real disk" or you can encrypt "an entire hard disk partition or a storage device such as USB flash drive."

Basically when I bring my laptop on trips I store all of my personal stuff including contacts, pictures, password database, etc in the encypted volume.

So if someone steals my laptop they can't access any of my personal stuff.

It's really good for encrypting USB flash drives since they are easy to lose.

There is an even easier to use free program called "Microsoft Private Folder" but Microsoft pulled this off their download site after only a few days due to IT department complaints that they couldn't access their employees' presonal data - that means it works well! You can still find the install program online from various internet sites; however, Microsoft no longer supports it.

Private Folder is very easy to use, but it puts a folder called "My Private Folder" in your My Computer area, so there is no plausable deniability.

Hope this helps,

Tin.

[StrayLight]

Truecrypt is an awesome encryption program.It looks pretty good. Thanks for passing the info.

A program I use to protect my passwords is Password Safe - http://passwordsafe.sourceforge.net/ - that was initially developed by Bruce Schneier and also uses the Blowfish encryption algorithm.

I keep the encrypted database on my computer, but have a backup copy on a USB drive and also uploaded and stored online somewhere.

It makes life a hell of a lot easier, and I feel pretty secure with it.

SL

[Tinman]

I use KeePass for my password database - http://keepass.sourceforge.net/

But it looks like the functionality is very similar from the screenshots on the Password Safe site.

Keepass uses AES-Twofish and can be run from a directory without being installed for plausible deniability.

I will install Password Safe and give it a run through.

Suerte,

Tin.

[StrayLight]

I will install Password Safe and give it a run through.The main thing I like about Password Safe is that it was initially developed by Bruce Schneier, who is like the dean of American cryptographers. He wrote "Applied Cryptography" some years ago, which many considered the bible of cryptography for many years.

If you don't know him, you can read his stuff at http://www.schneier.com/

Bottom line is, his endorsement of Password Safe is what gives me the warm and fuzzy I have about it.

Ciao,

SL

[FredCool]

Hi to all,

Truekrypt, passwordsafe, are all very good tools but do not think with BIOS security and this tools you are save with your laptop. If you are using the Laptop for business you have more unsecure data on your disk as you think.

If someone steal the laptop, the first will be, if he can not enter the BIOS, he go to unplug your harddisk conect it on a normal PC and adios with your data, then he have all your data. If you are using not only a Webmail solution like MSN, yahoo, Outlook Web Access, all your email adresses are away. With an apple, you have no chance to save your data, with an Intel (Windows XP) you have options, but the only which gives you 100% security is SaveGuardEasy (I do not work for that company) this systems install the loader in the bootrecord from your Laptop and when you have all disk's encrypted, nobody can steal your data. With an Laptop with Linux on it you need a very good engeneer for install a secure system, a Laptop out of the box and no special configuration can not be save.

I travel a lott and for this reasons I try many Solutions, I use also truecrypt, but only for data I need on USB (disk or stick)

Passwordsafe is nice but not realy comfortable to use, I like to use one password for entering the pc and then I do not want to take care about anything. Some people travel with an USB disk for backup, this is the biggest fail they do, if someone steal this disk, again adios with your data.

The only secure solution (for me) is when all disk's are encrypted and the Data I need to backup when I am traveling is on the datastore in my company, connected with an VPN, all hotels, apartments, have now a good internetconnection so it is not the big deal to work inside an VPN.

How many of you are using Skype? I think many, do you realy shut down Skype each time you shut down the PC? Do you use autologon on Skype MSN, Yahoo? (many unsave data with messengers, phonenumbers, email, conversations all is stored unsave on your disk)

If you are traveling for business only a encrypted system can save all your data and the invest is nothing against stolen data.

Suerte,

FC

[Tinman]

Here's a good website for portable apps that don't install into the system registry, etc.

http://www.portableapps.com

This is nice because you can put programs like address books that contain personal information or web browsers that contain your favorites on a memory stick and take your settings with you.

For instance, this website has made a stripped-down version of Mozilla Thunderbird email / address book program. You can import your Outlook contacts into the program and it will keep the program and your data in a folder structure and not install everywhere in your system. Of course if you put this on a USB flash drive, you would want to encrypt the entire drive in case it falls into the wrong hands.

There is even a portable anti-virus that you can put on your USB drive and take to a friend's house.

Hope this helps,

Tin

[Jackson]

Greetings everyone,

I move the discussion about finding computer cables to it's own thread in this forum.

http://www.argentinaprivate.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4270

Thanks,

Jackson