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Mac Security Alarm System
RogueAce writes "A program named iAlertU sounds a screeching siren when someone attempts to steal your Macbook. Thanks to the sudden motion drop sensors that Macs use to park the hard drive, iAlertU can detect when your Macbook is being picked up, moved or closed. Also, by using the handy remote that comes with the Macbook, you can turn the alarm on and off like you would a car, which the Macbook responds to by making the all too familiar chirping sound and a flash and flicker of the screen. The code behind it is from a guy named Christian Kleins."
Will people ignore it just like a car alarm?
Can you get flashy rims on your macbook?
What happens if say.... the computer isn't turned on? It's a neat idea, but it has a severe shortcoming. People don't steal computers (usually) while they're still on. They make off with them when you leave the bag unattended.
Silence is golden... and duct tape is silver.
Car alarms are useless enough. Do any of you run to see if a theft is in progress when you hear one? Neither do I, because we've all heard too many of them.
And people can't even remember to turn off their cell phone ringers. What makes you think they're going to remember to turn off their laptop theft alarms?
How many people are going to want to lock and unlock the laptop everytime they walk away? I know a lot of people barely want to do the WinXP windows+L everytime, much less lock and unlock with a remote control.
Anyone know if this can be adapted for the Thinkpad's active protection system? It's pretty much the same thing, as far as I know...
I'm the Devil the Windows users warned you about.
O RLY?!
switcher \'swi`ch &r\, n.
A person who thinks that they are a Mac user but are really just trying to be. The mistake they make is to try to become a Mac user, when real Mac users are all about not trying to be anything and following your own rules. There is no fashion code to being a Mac user. There are no rules as to what applications you have to run.
Recent converts like you are ruining the old school Mac community because you are posers. Apple releases one OS that popularizes Fitts' law and the Genie effect, and suddenly people assume being a Mac user is all about owning a Mac. But a real Mac user is born, not made. You "switchers" are misrepresenting yourselves and the Mac platform. You're giving people the wrong idea of what Macintosh is.
switcher: shops at hot topic, thinks Firefox is a good Mac app, waiting for OS X port of PayrollPro 2000, follows any hint of a fashion trend (instead of setting them!), wouldn't know Clarus from Carl Sagan.
real Mac user: someone true to who they are, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They're not fond of rules and they have no respect for the status quo. The ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world.
...unlike a car. When someone tries to steal a car and a car alarm goes off, the car itself isn't going anywhere (although you may have a broken window or two.) Unfortunately, when someone tries to steal a Macbook and the iAlertU alarm goes off, I don't think the Macbook will fare too well as a result. Most likely it would be dropped out of sheer surprise, or dropped/thrown in the process of trying to escape the irate Mac owner and the local security guards.
Still, I suppose even an inoperable Macbook with the hard drive intact is better than having all your corporate and personal data stolen.
I'll remember to plug my headphones in the next time I need a new MacBook.
I had a sucky sig.
Just another fucking Slashvert...
That's a nice novel use for an otherwise unrelated technology. I'm sure the SMS wasn't intended for security, but it works well for it.
As for being off... I wonder, does anything run while the laptop is asleep? My powerbook has probably spent less than 5 minutes turned off in the last four months. Most users close the lid and sleep it. (my powerbook draws the same 2 watts when it's asleep as when it's off, so why bother turning it off?)
A firmware hack might enable the alarm to wake up the book if it's moved. I assume the PMU/SMU is controlled by flashable firmware. Also, the SMS is in the older powerbooks also - this article only mentions the macbook pros, I wonder if it works in the older models also?
I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
My problem arises when I take my old Powerbook in there and realize I need to use the restroom. The crowd is pretty honest and I'm pretty quick in the facilities, but I really hate packing up my whole setup and taking it into the stall with me. This might allow me that feeling of security to leave my old Powerbook out while I take care of business.
While there's still some risk involved, it sounds like this will be just the thing to make me:
I'd probably risk this with my old model Powerbook, but I don't think I'd do so if I upgraded to a new MacBook Pro.
Cut the plug from a dead pair of phones.
I'd recommend Undercover by Orbicule. It runs continuously in the background, and if your laptop is ever stolen then you call up the company and they set it to transmit it's location every time it connects to a network. Of course since my laptop has never actually been stolen I can't really tell you whether it works or not.
The bleeping car is out in the parking lot where I can't hear it. The bleeping Mac is in the cubicle next to mine. I'm not going to be able to get any work done. I'm not going to ignore it. The result for the poor Mac might be quite unfortunate. The bottom line is that it won't still be screaming after about thirty seconds.
If someone is bent on getting a $4000 MacBook Pro for free, he may well be smart enough to
#!. Pull the battery
#2. Pull the hard drive
#3. & thus never allow anything to run off the original hard drive
"Please step away from the notebook".
This turns off the notebook without any software overrides (otherwise you wouldn't be able to restart after a bad OS crash). Then steal all you want.
The poster didn't mention it, but there is a streaming video showing this alarm in action. Quite amusing to me.
Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Comment removed based on user account deletion
So about this leet laptop alarm...
It seems another easy way to deactivate the whining alarm is to just *gasp* yank the battery out. If you REALLY wanted to protect your investment, someone should create a laptop "club", like the ones people used to put on their steering wheels... Because seriously, if you're so far down social outcast pole that you'll boldly chirp your laptop alarm and let the screen blink in a public setting, then why not go that extra mile and strap an unsightly metal rod to your little bundle of joy. That's about as queer as a football bat. That is all.
This isn't the first such motion alarm for the Mac. BumpAlarm (of which I happen to be the developer) was an idea that was implemented a little over a year ago. http://www.alcemore.com/blog/2005/03/26/bumpalarm- motion-sensor-for-apple-powerbooks/
http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/17684
What if you have the audio muted or really silent, or the thief plugs in headphones? What if the laptop goes into sleep mode? What if the battery runs out, or, if the laptop is plugged in, they unplug it and wait for the battery to die?
:)
There are too many ways around this so called "security" mechanism to be anything more than a gimmick. Although I will credit it because a theif that has no idea about or previous experience with this software is going to get caught red handed.
Hero of Allacrost, a FOSS RPG for *NIX/*BSD/OS X/Win
Don't you know that Mac users rarely turn the computer off? Only after a system upgrade of course.
Mind | Body | Spirit | Cash
Mac users are some mighty strange people. I prefer to turn my computer off BEFORE system upgrades...
Laptops are much smaller than a car yet cars are still being stolen. This can probably reduce the possibilities but it is certainly not 100% stolen-proof.
Why not use some type of RFID system, where the owner keeps an RFID tag in his/her pocket. Once they move too far away from the laptop (2 or 3 feet?), the alarm sounds. Rather than making a conscious effort to arm the laptop, it would be automatic.
It would be nice if someone wrote a program like a car alarm to try to deter theft.
There are a few decent shortkuts that use the Windowsw key (although Win-L is my fav). Here is a list.
This setup may not offer the best line of security, but it would had saved the Macbook we have in our retail store. (Apple Australia)
We had a group of normal gentleman come in, two of them starting a conversation with our sales staff. The other gentleman who came in walked around to browse, and without being seen by our sales staff who were busying talking to the other man used bolt cutters to cut the metal wire security device and placed the Macbook in a bag and walked out.
This was all caught on video, but there's not much we can do now since we can't identify any of them.
Our store manager considered options to prevent this in the future but everything was just to expansive.
Until I implement our own in-house security system (Network based, if a local server is unable to ping a particular desktop/laptop it'll sound an audible alarm) I'll be installing this software on our Macbooks.
He took some cigarettes, a few notes, a mobile phone...
He also took my laptop out of its case, opened the screen, turned it on and booted to the Windows login screen. And that's how I found it.
It wasn't a bad a little laptop.
I wonder...
This post contains benzene, nitrosamines, formaldehyde and hydrogen cyanide.
Fuck the alarm! Like anyone is going to care. What they need to do is add a GPS tracking device that is soldered into the motherboard. This way when you switch it on it transmits a GPS locator signal that cannot be turned off. No more stolen Mac's. Breitling (the watch company) put similar technology into a watch years ago. I want it in my Mac. "Hold on man! Don't take it! It's an Apple! They have fucking satellite tracking devices in them!" Seriously.
What the fuck! English isn't that hard. Please make an effort.
But customers will always want to jiggle them, and you don't want to frighten them away.
Stores like harvey norman seem to have a system with a wire attached to a little box stuck to the back of phones, palm tops, etc. There is a LED on the little box to show you that something will happen if the wire is cut.
A simple circuit which is broken when the cable is cut could have sounded the alarm. Perhaps a simple loop of wire which terminates in the display console, and loops through the cable fitting on the laptop. Use the current to hold a relay open. When the relay closes a sonalert goes off. Jaycar have lots of really loud buzzers.
http://michaelsmith.id.au
Oh boy, I can't wait until the day I'm trying to get some work done in my local library when some idiot sets off his alarm by accident.
wa-Oh wa-Oh wa-Oh
dooooooooot dooooooooot
Mah Mah Mah
Doo-Yee Do-Yee
-Grey
Silver Clipboard: Time Management Tips
Would be nice if laptops came with built in GPS and a tiny application which sends the laptops location as soon as the thing boots up or waits until there is some form of internet connection and sends its information. Sounds simple.
Task Mangler
Instead of using the remote control to arm and disarm it, it could offer the ability to have a BlueTooth cellphone paired to it. If the BlueTooth phone is out of range and the computer is moved, the alarm goes off, but if the phone is nearby when it's moved, it doesn't. Users end up with much less chance of accidental alarms and much less chance of forgetting to arm the alarm.
Well, yes, but first you'd have to sende a software signal. This causes MacOS to pop up a dialouge asking you to sleep, cancel, log off or shut down. I would be possible to make the alarm go off at this stage. It will be silenced after five seconds, but till.
Even better, hit Ctrl-Apple-Power which reboots the Mac instantly (kinda like Ctrl-Alt-Del on MS-DOS).
Free Manning, jail Obama.
And this is from a guy who can't post without swearing. Sometimes real mastery of the english language is to communicate without looking like your from the ghetto.
The software's site is very scarce on details. Assuming this app works with the built in speaker/audio system, what's to stop any halfway intelligent thief from plugging in a dummy headphone jack before touching the laptop, thus silencing the alert?
I think you mean "you're from the ghetto".
is a rottweiler. Just try to refrain from eating peanut butter sandwiches while typing. You don't want your macbook to smell like a Scooby snack.
this thread has some of the worst, most redundant comments i've ever seen.
I don't think an alarm will stop anyone from stealing a $2000 laptop. maybe a $400 laptop, but not a macbook pro.
I was at the Apple store in Columbus, OH showing a friend some basic video editing in iMovie and decided to use the attached iSight as a test video source. Simply turning it on (yes I knew the right way) was enough to trigger the anti-theft device that caused the whole store to take notice and three employees to stop helping other people and come investigate.
They fiddiled with the anti-theft system for several minutes and I explained the situation after they got the alarm turned off and asked if they could turn the iSight on. The manager did so and set off the alarm himself which took several more minutes. The whole ordeal was about 10 deafening minutes in which the three employees were not helping other customers and the whole store was annoyed by the loud beeping.
I don't know the outcome of the other customers but it certanly wasn't a pleasant shopping experience for us. Moral of the story is that over-zealous anti-theft devices will annoy the customer. Take precautions but don't alienate.
You know what they say... Obscenity is the crutch of inarticulate motherfuckers.
I work in an office where stolen property is nearly a common occurance (a stranger came in and simply sauntered off with a petty cash box the day I started working there). To guard against this, I keep my Mac Decoy Pro in my desk.
What's a Mac Decoy Pro, you ask? It's an extra nonworking Macbook Pro. Looks just like the real functional thing, just sitting there waiting to be taken.
Where did I get it? Well, when I heard that Powerbooks were going to use Intel processors, I bought a Macbook Pro with the express intention of swapping out the hard drive, memory and processor: the first two I did with nary more than a dented/warped casing. The latter... well, my screwdriver slipped and broke several components off the main board. I tried the purchase just the notebook mainboard from Apple, but essentially, they told me to go screw myself*. So with a heavy heart and a sigh of resignation, I did what any self respecting geek would do: I played poker for an hour until I had enough to buy another Macbook Pro. I've reassembled the broken one, which I leave out in the open in my cubicle when I go home at night. If it gets stolen, then that's my alarm indicator that it's time to leave the company.
* I'm still wondering that "incredible level of service" I keep hearing from Mac users.
Solomon
"Twice half-assed makes an ass whole." --Solomon K. Chang
How do you upgrade a computer that is turned off?
damaged by dogma
Well your solution could use a bit more thought... if a Mac freezes up or crashes (not at all uncommon I hear) then an alarm goes off... pretty soon the manager is going to axe it.
The real purpose of anti-theft measures is to DETER theft. If someone is completely determined to steal something it will happen. However, if someone goes to steal a laptop and an alarm goes off, they're likely to drop it and run instead of wait to see if they can get away with it. Also, my Toshiba R-15 does this and it's certainly not a Mac.
In the last two years I worked for a company that had a handful of laptops with custom GPS hardware inside the cases. No software controls, just hardware added to the inside of the case set to transmit under certain circumstances. They also had software to report back to a central server whenever they were connected to the internet. /. readers be trusted with our own armed security? I know I shouldn't be. :) )
Laptop was stolen, theft was noticed, word went out. Laptop booted up, transmitter in laptop transmited. Laptop booted from CD without going into the case and turning the transmitter off, laptop began transmitting continously. Windows format and install takes a while, so the signal was transmitted for more than an hour. Some wandering around with recievers until company security was sure they had the right apartment. Police called and informed of the situation and that company security is going to get the laptop back, now, would the police like to meet them there?
End result was laptop recovered in less than 12 hours, and thief in jail for felony theft. The laptop was gone longer as evidence than it was gone with the thief.
It is expensive, it is not perfect, and I have no idea how you would get it into a case with as little freespace as a
Mac laptop, but it can work very well.
I would be more specific but I signed one of those NDA's that some companies love so much.
The main starting problems would be the usual, cost, how to fit it in the case and maybe power consumption. Also, a big hurdle might be getting the police to declare a GPS signal probable cause to go into where ever the laptop is. Especially if the signal is not currrently transmitting. My previous employers solved that last one by sending there own people and then reporting the whole mess to the police, but most of us individuals don't have those resources. (Maybe that is a good thing, should
On any Mac it's pretty easy to set up a script to "phone home" whenver a computer connects to the internet, sending the current ip address and whatever else you want. It's certainly not going to always work for a stolen computer, but it's a start, in case somebody does get the computer.
from Steve Jobs to Christian Kleins:
"What the hell did I ever do to you?"
ôó
So what stops someone else from turning of your elite alarm?
Twist the screw, rip out the battery... no alarm.
Most laptops get stolen in airport terminals. What will be the point of having an alarm go off when the laptop is picked up, when the user is constantly picking it up himself?
"No problem. I have the capacity to do infinite work so long as you don't mind that my quality approaches zero."-Dilbert
Toshiba tablet PC's know which way is up and you can set the alarm-screensaver on (with a keypress) so a noise is made when the machine is removed from desk. Not massively useful, particularly if the thief knows how to turn the volume down with the thumbwheel labelled 'volume'.
I have been tempted to program the accelerometer for something more useful but that has so far eluded me. Maybe I could get it to spin down the disk in case of imminent sudden impact, or have it configured as 'integrated joystick' - tilt control for games and teevee. At the moment it pops up the start menu (if you flick it up/down) or does if you flick it left/right).
Presumably the Mac disks can also be read for movement in X, Y and Z axis, or do they use polar coordinates to avoid the gimbal lock 'issue'?
I also use a physical lock to secure my powerbook to a desk if I'm in an environment I'm a little sketchy about, and of course in somewhere like a Starbucks or an airport I'd never leave my computer more than a metre away from me anyway. I imagine most people who have had a portable for a while and haven't had one stolen exercise a similar level of caution.
The inconvenience of doing this is dwarfed by the convenience of owning a portable computer.
www.clarke.ca
IBM advertised their "drop-resistant" laptops over a year ago with the same G-sensing,
head-parking technology. Any reason why the same type of program wouldn't work on IBM (now Lenovo) notebooks or any manufacturers using similar technology?
-l
I know there is video and all, but the beta isn't even posted yet. Also, if you close the lid on a Powerbook/MacBook it goes to sleep, will the app remain operable and detect movement with a sleeping machine? Seems like a bright idea, but sort of fades on closer examination without actual examination (see also first sentence.)
the future is here, it is just not evenly distributed - w. gibson
... guess I didn't get the memo!!! FYI, we are out here, we read /. too. :-)
Sometimes the levels of testosterone poisoning around here just keep us from posting much. Believe me when I tell that there are are lots of "virtual head slaps" being granted, even if the comments are never posted. Like the ninny in one of the above posts who bought a brand new MacBook and ruined it with a screwdriver - I could not think of a nice way to tell him what an idiotic move that was so I just moved on... It happens every day.
How do you upgrade a computer that is turned off?
I think the grandparent is talking about hardware.
God save our Queen, and Heaven bless The Maple Leaf Forever!
Apple doesn't sell most replacement parts for many reasons, but the applicable one to you is that they have no control over an expensive mainboard once you get it and if you've already damaged one (with a screwdriver, nice) you could just keep telling them you recieved a DOA part. And even if you did, why should they believe you? Did you follow proper anti-static practices, do you have the correct tools, do you have the proper take-apart procedures?
You have said in you post that you do not.
You are why Apple does not sell replacement parts to consumers.
Ah, I've been stung by the pedantic pisser!
damaged by dogma