Prey - Laptop tracking software
Prey is a free program that you can use to track your laptop if it is ever stolen. Prey can transmit detailed tracking information, take a screen shot of the desktop and if your computer is equipped with a webcam - a picture of the thief.
Pray runs silently in the background never letting the thief know you're tracking them. If the thief doesn't connect your computer to the internet, Prey will automatically connect to any available wireless network and start transmitting tracking data.
Setup Prey
- Download and install Prey
- Create an account at PreyProject.com
- In the Prey Configuration Panel, enter the API Key. You will find your API Key at the Preyproject.com webiste, login and look under User Information.
- Create a New Device - From the control panel at the PreyProject.com website
- Under User Information - click Add new device
- Enter a name for your device.
- Select your operating system and version
- Click Create
- In the Prey Configurator enter the device Key
How to track your laptop
- Login to PreyProject.com website.
- Click on the device name that you want to track.
- Flip the missing switch to ON.
- Secrol down to the bottom of the page and click update.
Why should I bother, if the thief will just reformat the hard drive?
Prey won't survive if the hard drive is reformatted, but experience shows that thieves tend to browse through the files on a stolen computer first. Plus, most laptop thefts are thefts of opportunity, involving people who may not know much about computers and will never expect that you are tracking them.
Help Prey work
Prey only works when your computer is connected to the internet. Prey can automatically connect to any unsecured wireless network, but this feature doesn't work perfectly and it requires an unsecured wireless network. Enabling the Guest account will allow the thief to easily use your computer and get online. Once your computer is online, Prey can send tracking information.
Windows XP Enable Guest Account
To enable Guest account
- Click on the start button
- Click on the Control Panel button
- Click on User Accounts
- Select Change an account
- Click Guest account
- Click Turn On the Guest Account
Make your Account private (password protected)
- Follow steps 1 through 4 to enable the Guest account
- Select your account name
- Click on Create a password
Windows Vista Enable Guest Account
To enable Guest account
- Click Start
- Click on the Control Panel button
- Click on User Accounts & Family Safety
- Click on User Accounts
- Click on Manage another account
- Select the Guest account
- Click Turn On
Make your Account private (password protected)
- Follow steps 1 through 4 to enable the Guest account
- Click on Create a password for your account
Get Your Laptop Back
Go to website
When police recover lost or stolen items they have no way of identifying the owner, so the items sit in a property locker. Juststolen.net provides a way for Police to identify the owner of a stolen item by searching the database at Juststolen.net and if the item has been registered, identify the owner.
Juststolen.net is a free service, you can register any item of value and search the database for your lost items. The added benefit of registering an item is that if that item were to disappear, all of the important information that police would need, like the serial number and model number would be stored in the database.
Prevent laptop theft
Only 2% of stolen laptops are ever returned; with the help of tracking software like Prey, the odds increase dramatically, but there are no guarantees. It may not always be possible to prevent someone from taking your laptop, but there are a few things you can do to help prevent it.
- Laptop bags are easy targets and frequently snatched. Instead, keep your laptop in a backpack or some other less obvious carrying case.
- Buy a laptop lock and use it.
- Don’t leave your laptop out in plain view. Laptops are frequently taken from unoccupied vehicles or an unoccupied table at the Coffee shop or library.
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