Case Studies Absolute locates stolen PCs for General Services Administration, breaks up theft ring

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	Absolute locates stolen PCs for General Services Administration, breaks up theft ring

Absolute locates stolen PCs for General Services Administration, breaks up theft ring

Technology Category	Cybersecurity & Privacy - Endpoint Security Functional Applications - Remote Monitoring & Control Systems
Applicable Functions	Business Operation
Use Cases	Remote Asset Management Theft Detection
Services	Cybersecurity Services System Integration
Challenge	When two laptop computers were stolen from the General Services Administration (GSA) office in Atlanta, just a few months after the agency had decided to load Absolute on all of its portable computers, the purchasing arm for the federal government was naturally concerned. Read More
About Customer	The General Services Administration (GSA) is an independent agency of the United States government, which helps to manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies by providing products and communications for U.S. government offices, transportation and office space for federal employees, and assists with cost-minimizing policies and other management tasks. With sensitive federal data on devices, and the need for employees to be mobile to visit the various federal agencies, protecting the data on these devices was critical. Read More
Solution	About two weeks after the laptops were reported stolen, the Absolute Monitoring Center captured location information when the thief used one of the laptops to access the internet. The Absolute Investigations team then contacted the Federal Protective Service (FPS), which secured a search warrant for the address corresponding to the phone line used by the thief to dial out. Within 48 hours, FPS officers arrested a man in College Park, Georgia, where they found one of the stolen devices. The man, in turn, led authorities to an accomplice who had eight other stolen devices in his possession - including the other stolen GSA laptop. As it turned out, the two men ran a ring of device thieves. As was the case at the GSA’s Atlanta office, the men secured temporary contract work, then walked out the door with laptops. Coincidentally, at about the same time, a third GSA laptop was stolen in an unrelated case. The Absolute Investigations team discovered this laptop in Columbia, South Carolina. The PC was recovered after FBI agents arrested the thief in Charlotte, North Carolina. None of the laptops, which cost the GSA between $3,000 and $5,000 each, were damaged and the information contained on the hard drives was retrieved intact. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Cybersecurity & Privacy - Endpoint Security

Functional Applications - Remote Monitoring & Control Systems

Applicable Functions

Business Operation

Use Cases

Remote Asset Management

Theft Detection

Services

Cybersecurity Services

System Integration

Challenge

When two laptop computers were stolen from the General Services Administration (GSA) office in Atlanta, just a few months after the agency had decided to load Absolute on all of its portable computers, the purchasing arm for the federal government was naturally concerned.

About Customer

The General Services Administration (GSA) is an independent agency of the United States government, which helps to manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies by providing products and communications for U.S. government offices, transportation and office space for federal employees, and assists with cost-minimizing policies and other management tasks. With sensitive federal data on devices, and the need for employees to be mobile to visit the various federal agencies, protecting the data on these devices was critical.

Solution

About two weeks after the laptops were reported stolen, the Absolute Monitoring Center captured location information when the thief used one of the laptops to access the internet. The Absolute Investigations team then contacted the Federal Protective Service (FPS), which secured a search warrant for the address corresponding to the phone line used by the thief to dial out. Within 48 hours, FPS officers arrested a man in College Park, Georgia, where they found one of the stolen devices. The man, in turn, led authorities to an accomplice who had eight other stolen devices in his possession - including the other stolen GSA laptop. As it turned out, the two men ran a ring of device thieves. As was the case at the GSA’s Atlanta office, the men secured temporary contract work, then walked out the door with laptops. Coincidentally, at about the same time, a third GSA laptop was stolen in an unrelated case. The Absolute Investigations team discovered this laptop in Columbia, South Carolina. The PC was recovered after FBI agents arrested the thief in Charlotte, North Carolina. None of the laptops, which cost the GSA between $3,000 and $5,000 each, were damaged and the information contained on the hard drives was retrieved intact.

Impact #1	The GSA has visibility of their devices, regardless of user or location.
Impact #2	The GSA has seen device theft drop dramatically and recovered several stolen devices, ensuring sensitive data is protected.

Impact #1

The GSA has visibility of their devices, regardless of user or location.

Impact #2

The GSA has seen device theft drop dramatically and recovered several stolen devices, ensuring sensitive data is protected.

Benefit #1	None of the laptops, which cost the GSA between $3,000 and $5,000 each, were damaged and the information contained on the hard drives was retrieved intact.

Benefit #1

None of the laptops, which cost the GSA between $3,000 and $5,000 each, were damaged and the information contained on the hard drives was retrieved intact.

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Overview

Absolute locates stolen PCs for General Services Administration, breaks up theft ring

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit