Caught a Theif

[CCT]

'Curiosity killed the cat.'


Given the times, the climate, and the weakness of North American law, ................

[xpuser357]

Satisfaction brought him back

[Platypus]

Congrats on a good result Bob!

[Mayet]

So, it's not the laptops we need to control, it's the carts?

lol

LOL



Great one Bob.. I have great respect for people who follow instincts like that..

[slgrieb]

A good piece of work, Bob. I think the whole Ebay story sounds like a sham, and I expect you're safe from the mob. We have a huge refinery right on my doorstep, and they see something like a couple dozen laptops disappear every year. Oddly enough, most of the thefts happen right around Christmas.

Most of the time, these are "in-house" affairs, but there have been some contractors involved as well. I get a fair number of these machines, because the thieves can't manage do things like figure out how to clear a password set in the BIOS and reformat the drive to install a new OS or otherwise cover their tracks.

Of course, it isn't like a log on screen that says "Warning! This computer is the property of Humongous Oil!" is obvious or anything. I call the IT Director, verify the serial number, he calls the sheriff, I do a deposition a few days later. In fact, I'm thinking about adding an entry to my resume to showcase my skills at giving depositions.

I get a kick out of ragging said IT Director, because he's a friend and also, a former NSA (that would be the National Security Agency) employee. Cheer up! If you feel as though your security concerns aren't taken seriously, imagine how my friend feels.

[BOB IROC]

Well the police gave us the one laptop back and we will get the others once serial numbers and ownership are verified.

The kid put a BIOS password on the laptop so now I have to find a way to clear it. I think I should be able to just remove the CMOS battery, but I have run across several laptops that does not work.

[El_Squid]

Belated congratulations on a fine piece of detective work and following your gut instincts!

I wouldn't worry too much about repercussions, because if that kid was truly "connected", those laptops would have been fenced hours after leaving the school. I think the lad simply found some open doors, espied a cartful of laptops, and followed his larcenous inclinations. A fluke.

And, at the cost of 16 laptops, he just bought himself at least one major felony charge and a free trip to the Big House.

[slgrieb]

Bob, just in case you haven't done your deposition yet, I'm going to share some of my hard earned experience. First of all, you are going to be answering direct questions, so keep your responses short and to the point. Resist embellishments.

Second, and most importantly, be careful about using the words "Well" "uh" "anyway" and the like. Use them too often, and you will sound like an idiot. Don't use them at all and your testimony will sound like a script and it won't be convincing. Normally, your deposition will be recorded, and you will be asked to read and sign a transcript which will then be entered as evidence.

If you goof it up, there is a fair chance you may have to testify in court. That's boring and is a huge waste of productive time.

[Matridom]

Well the police gave us the one laptop back and we will get the others once serial numbers and ownership are verified.

The kid put a BIOS password on the laptop so now I have to find a way to clear it. I think I should be able to just remove the CMOS battery, but I have run across several laptops that does not work.

Bob, i know several companies have bios password reset utilities, others still have jumpers to clear cmos, what make/model of notebook do you have?

[3fingersalute]

Bob, i know several companies have bios password reset utilities, others still have jumpers to clear cmos, what make/model of notebook do you have?

That kind of quantities in a school district, I'm bettin Dell.

[edball]

Well the police gave us the one laptop back and we will get the others once serial numbers and ownership are verified.

The kid put a BIOS password on the laptop so now I have to find a way to clear it. I think I should be able to just remove the CMOS battery, but I have run across several laptops that does not work.

If it is a Dell, you can call their tech support, and if you can prove you own it, they have a way to clear the password based on the serial number.

[geeksRus]

nice detective work...reminds me of The Cuckoo's Egg. the kid must be arrogant, thinking he was smarter than you.

[FatalException0E]

nice detective work...reminds me of The Cuckoo's Egg. the kid must be arrogant, thinking he was smarter than you.

No, just stupid..not knowing that they had a way to see which computers are on their network and what they're doing.

[BOB IROC]

No, just stupid..not knowing that they had a way to see which computers are on their network and what they're doing.

It was stupid, but I think many of my schools students have a bit of arrogance thinking they are ahead of the tech staff. They may get away with it at first in some cases but always seem to get caught. It reminds me of watching Cops or the TV shows where they show criminals trying to outrun and get away from the police who always end up caught.