Privacy Means Profit: Prevent Identity Theft and Secure You and Your Bottom Line

Chapter 13. Protect Mobile Data: Laptop Responsibility

Why, you might wonder, does the subject of protecting laptop computers and mobile data devices warrant an entire chapter when I've already discussed laptop protection throughout the book? Part of the answer is profit-driven: Laptops are currently at the bull's-eye of targeting the enemy and, therefore, protecting your bottom line. No single information asset is targeted so consistently by thieves, compromised so frequently inside corporations, or reported on more vociferously by the media. Keeping customer records, employee data, and proprietary intellectual capital safe and secure is essential to running a profitable company. In other words, a data breach can easily destroy customer trust, stock value, brand reputation, and, on occasion, the business itself.

The second part of the answer lies in the fact that most of us can empathize with the experience of having a laptop stolen. Just the thought of your laptop being stolen, loaded with mission-critical and sensitive personal information, is enough to cause night terrors. Moreover, it turns out, most of us are very emotionally attached to our laptops; consequently, even the prospect of having them compromised (dare I say, violated?) elicits a protective response.

Because we treat laptops almost like an extended member of our families (we bring them on vacation, take them in for checkups, upgrade their capabilities, occasionally spend more time with them than our children),