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."

Comments

One Tiny Loophole:

[dteichman2]

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.

This is going to be obnoxious

[Anonymous Coward]

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?

Re:This is going to be obnoxious

[MobileTatsu-NJG]

"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."

That's a bit of a simplistic view. If my car alarm goes off, I go check on it and make sure somebody hasn't broken a window or something. I've seen others around the complex do this, too. Even if somebody did break into my car and I didn't hear it, they still wouldn't easily be able to start it. When the alarm goes off, it kills the ignition.

All that said, I can't imagine a would-be car thief trying to steal a car while the alarm's going off. Besides being annoying, I'd be afraid of Mr. Owner showing up with a baseball bat.

"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?"

Heh. Not a great comparison. Everywhere I've worked, especially in cubicle environments, you learn pretty quickly to not be obnoxious with your phone. Maybe people are too polite to raise a fuss when a cell phone goes off in a restaraunt, but coworkers won't tolerate being annoyed on a daily basis. I've seen this happen. The chairman of the board at one place I worked actually had a group of people approach him and say "turn that damn thing down." Why would a laptop alarm be any different?

Just to be clear, though, I'm picking on your analogies, not on your point. I agree that this is probably a pretty useless technology, at least for wide-spread use. The stupid thing about it is that it probably has no real way of knowing who the rightful owner is. I suppose it could be password protected, that's a start I guess. I actually think that a remote (not unlike the ones used with a car alarm) would be a little bit more useful. It's a specific device that, at least in theory, only the owner would have. If it's 'armed', the computer won't do jack shit until the remote deactivates the security system. A system like that could POTENTIALLY work if it's developed correctly, but ... well if you're shaking your head I can't say I'd blame you. Personal computers are a little too easy to rearrange for this sort of system to work well. Okay, you win, I don't have a great solution to the problem either.

Obstrusive?

[immakiku]

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.

Good idea, but you CAN wreck a computer...

[Parallax Blue]

...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.

Re:But...

[Neoprofin]

Probably not until you've heard it for the thousandth time. So the one guy in your office who keeps coming back from lunch and forgetting to turn it off the alarm, will as usual, ruin it for everyone.

Re:Heartfelt note to recent "switchers"

[lordmoose]

You seem pretty insecure about your Mac status. Also, I doubt that a "real Mac user" would take the time to categorize the actions of others and then type up a post about it.

Re:But...

[fastgood]

the one guy in your office who keeps coming back from lunch and forgetting to turn it off

Make an audible alarm that only goes off when the patented magnetic power cord is detached (accidental or otherwise).

* or remotely trigger a second magnet -- hidden in a backpack -- to pull your new $25/ounce toy out of the wrong hands.

Mute? Headphones? Sleep mode? Power off?

[RootsLINUX]

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. :)

Re:What if

[jimijon]

Don't you know that Mac users rarely turn the computer off? Only after a system upgrade of course.

Turn on and off with the remote?

[aliquis]

So what stops someone else from turning of your elite alarm?

Setting off the alarm while travelling.

[edunbar93]

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?