TRAVEL ALERT>Computer Theft at airports

[T.Matthew Ciolek]

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                            H-Net list for Asian History and Culture <H-ASIA at MSU.EDU>
                            April 24, 1996

Travel Alert: Computer Theft at airports
Ed. note:  Not all H-ASIA subscribers have the luxury of laptop computers
to take on research trips, but the following item should provide a
cautionary note, as well as a reminder that the more things you have, the
more things you have to worry about.            F.F.C.
*********************************************************************From: David Hodge <hodge at u.washington.edu>

The busy conference and vacation season will soon be upon us, so I thought
you might be interested in the following alert from the FAA, forwarded to
the Lexington office today:

The FAA recently learned of a hustle that's being employed at airports all
across the country to steal laptop computers.  It involves two persons who
look for a victim carrying a laptop and approaching a metal detector.
They position themselves in front of the unsuspecting passenger. They
stall until the mark puts the laptop computer on the conveyor belt. Then
the first subject moves through the metal detector easily.  The second
subject sets off the detector and begins a slow process of emptying
pockets, removing jewelry, etc.  While this is happening, the first
subject takes the laptop as soon as it appears on the conveyor belt and
moves away quickly.

When the passenger finally gets through the metal detector, the laptop is
gone.  The subject that picks it up heads into the gate area and disappears
among the crowd.  Sometimes a third subject will take a hand-off from the
first subject and the computer is out of the restricted area before the
mark even knows that it is gone.

This is becoming a widely practiced problem and is happening at airports
everywhere.  When traveling  with a laptop computer, try to avoid lines
to enter a metal detector when possible.  When you can't do that, delay
putting your luggage and laptop on the conveyor belt until you are sure
that you will be the next person through the metal detector.  As you
move through the metal detector, keep you eyes on the conveyor belt and
watch for your luggage and laptop to come through as well as watching
for what those in front of you are picking up.


SOURCE:
U.S. Federal Aviation Administration

Captain Terry Bowman
Chief, Technology Integration
Secretary of the Air Force
Office of Public Affairs

(703) 695-8561


 Robert A. Harrell                   Phone:  404 294-3490
 Director of Media Services          FAX:    404 294-3492
 DeKalb College
 555 North Indian Creek Drive        Internet:
 Clarkston, GA 30021-2396 USA        rharrell at DeKalb.dc.PeachNet.EDU
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Dr T. Matthew CIOLEK           tmciolek at coombs.anu.edu.au
ANU Social Sciences Information Systems Administrator,
Coombs Computing Unit, Research School of Social Sciences,
[Coombsweb Social Sciences Server  http://coombs.anu.edu.au]
Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia
ph +61 (0)6 249 0110             fax: +61 (0)6 257 1893
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