Thinking about buying a cable lock but I've seen the video where someone was able to remove a cable lock with a piece of cardboard. My husband thinks having the computer locked to the desk makes it look like it is worth stealing so he prefers to just hide it in a suitcase or drawer (it usually won't fit in the room safe). Is it worth buying a cable lock?

Cable locks deter the casual thief, nothing stops the really determined thief. I took a cable lock with me on this last trip to Italy, as well as suitcase locks and a security cable so that I could lock my laptop in the suitcase and lock the suitcase to some immovable object. Of course, I never bothered to do so and never worried about it once I got there.

I travel with an older, small and very lightweight laptop that's great for browsing the web and checking email, but it has NO data of any importance on it at all, so if it did get stolen I would not have to worry about losing valuable or confidential data.

Speaking of which - if you have valuable or confidential data on a laptop, either

a) leave it at home, or

b) install an encryption system and use it!

Anything else is living in a fool's paradise.

Our computer isn't for leisure travel, it is used for business while my husband is in the hotel room. It is valuable and would be a huge problem if someone walked away with it since the whole purpose of this type of trip is for him to be there working on the computer.

That being said, he hasn't had any problem in the years he has been doing this. He sometimes even leaves it running on the desk while he goes out for breakfast. He is staying in pretty upscale hotels but I'm not sure if that makes a difference.

I'm just starting to wonder if he should be taking more security precautions.

Dear V,

>he hasn't had any problem in the years he has been doing this. ...I'm just starting to wonder if he should be taking more security precautions.<

I suggest that you find something else to wonder about.

Do you have any windows that need painting, doors that squeak, trees to be trimmed?

I have to disagree with Ira, who I trust and respect.

Any computer (home, office, or traveling) that contains mission-critical programs or data should be backed up regularly - often enough that re-creating a given state would not be a problem - and the backup stored off-site.

If the content falling into enemy hands would give a competitor an advantage, then the critical information should be encrypted. Today's thieves are getting very good at exploiting information they find on computers they've stolen by finding out who it would benefit and proposing an exchange of value.

Putting on my IT manager hat rather than my traveler hat, I'd INSIST that he at least use a cable lock -- and I'd make certain he had a good back up and that any confidential data was encrypted.

Then I'd quit worrying.

He doesn't have secure data on the computer. He has video that he uses at conventions that he attends and that is what he is working on while in the hotel room. I'm thinking I should just buy the cable lock and try to make him use it so at least someone who enters the room can't easily walk away with the computer.

Which lock is the best?

Yes Ira, I DO worry too much and I have loads of laundry I should be doing instead

I work in IT and have seen the trick of opening a cable lock with cardboard - it can be done quite easily and takes about as long as using a key if you know what you are doing. As far as I know more recent lock designs have overcome this risk - anyone with an older cable lock might want to consider replacing it!

Hi Robe,

>I have to disagree with Ira, who I trust and respect.<

The feeling is mutual.

However, my point was not whether DH is doing the right thing, but whether he will listen to DW.

>However, my point was not whether DH is doing the right thing, but whether he will listen to DW.<

But of course he will. Don't they all?