Everett, Wash.
Published: Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Laptop rats out thieves

LoJack for Laptops helped recover a local man's laptop and catch two suspects in the case.

By Diana Hefley
Herald Writer

 LYNNWOOD -- The crooks likely watched Michael Pierson walk into the mall before they smashed out the window of his car and made off with his laptop.

There was no way for the thieves to know someone would soon be watching them.

Hidden in Pierson's computer was software that eventually led police to the crooks' hideout.

Two people were arrested Saturday at an Everett motel. Police found Pierson's laptop, another stolen computer and what appeared to be an identity-theft operation.

The arrests came after a month of remote spying on the thieves through Pierson's computer.

The Lynnwood man had installed LoJack for Laptops anti-theft and tracking software just a few months before it was taken. The software allowed Lynnwood investigators to pinpoint where the laptop was logging on to the Internet as the suspects moved from location to location. It even passed along pictures of what the suspects were viewing on the Web.

"It was extremely helpful and will be in the prosecution as well," Lynnwood police officer Scott Dilworth said. "We wouldn't have had any leads without it."

The break-in happened in late August. Pierson had gone to the mall after work and was gone less than a half-hour. He found a window smashed out of his Honda Element and his computer, a cell phone and a digital camera gone.

"I did a stupid thing by leaving my backpack in the car," Pierson said.

When he realized his laptop was gone, he worried about the sensitive information kept inside. There were tax records, his Social Security number and information about his condominium association, including key codes.

"It's everything an ID thief needs," Pierson said.

Stolen and lost laptops have gained national publicity in recent years. Government agencies and businesses have admitted that sensitive client and consumer information had been jeopardized after laptops were stolen. Last year The Boeing Co. reported that a laptop with personal information of 90,000 employees had been stolen. Employees were offered credit-monitoring services. Earlier this year a government report found that 500 laptops were missing from the Internal Revenue Service.

Pierson had taken steps to protect the information by encrypting files, he said. He didn't take any chances and took a day off from his computer job to cancel all of his credit cards, change his bank account and put a fraud alert on his credit.

Pierson also was able to get some extra help to track down his computer using software that came with the laptop.

Once he reported the computer stolen to police, he also contacted a monitoring center for LoJack for Laptops.

That's when the stolen computer was told to "call home," said Ben Haidri, a spokesman for Absolute Software, the company that sells the product.

The computer is remotely programmed to secretly contact the monitoring center's server every 15 minutes when it's connected to the Internet. Even if the thief erases the computer's hard drive, the software can still operate, Haidri said. The laptop is instructed to send information about where it is accessing the Internet. The computer also captures pictures of Web sites the user is accessing and sends the screen shots back to the monitoring center.

Lynnwood police were able to see two names of local people who had criminal history, Dilworth said. They saw that the users were attempting to open credit cards using other people's information.

Screen shots also showed that the users were logging on to LimeWire, a free file sharing program generally used to exchange music, videos or games. It appears the suspects were stealing private information from people who were unaware that they were allowing other LimeWire users access to all of their computer files, not just music or videos, Lynnwood police detective Doug Teachworth said.

Police believe the suspects were using Pierson's laptop along with stolen mail and information they hijacked from other people's computers to make fraudulent purchases. It also appears that the suspects were able to access the Internet from wireless connections that were not secure, Teachworth said.

It isn't uncommon for police departments to find more than a stolen computer using the LoJack software, Haidri said.

The software has led to identity-theft rings and chop shops, Haidri said. The software, which has been around for about 11 years, helps recover about 50 stolen or lost computers a week, Haidri said. It costs $50 a year.

The key is providing law enforcement with as much information as they need to track down the thieves, he said.

"It's one thing to know where the computer is, it's another to actually go get it," Haidri said.

Lynnwood police used the information from screen shots to track down the suspects to the Everett motel, Dilworth said. They were able to determine that one had checked in and the other's vehicle was parked outside. Both suspects were inside the motel room when police knocked on the door.

One suspect told police she had bought the laptop from a man for $250. She said she and the other suspect were using stolen mail and other information they'd gleaned from people's computer files to commit fraud, according to police affidavit.

The two suspects were booked into jail for investigation of possession of stolen property. The investigation continues. Police expect there are numerous victims. The two suspects, who both have extensive criminal history, also could face fraud and identity theft charges.

Pierson said he initially was skeptical about the tracking software. He now recommends it to all of his relatives and friends. He also reminds people not to leave anything valuable in their cars and put a password on everything.

"You just have to be careful about the type of data you're carrying around," he said.

Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
© 2009The Daily Herald Co., Everett, WA