Fortress PC

Snoops, hackers, and viruses abound online. We identify all the tools you need to defend yourself against these hazards.

Safety on the Road: Portable Security Tool Kit

The antivirus utilities and firewalls we recommend for home desktop PCs work just as well on laptops. You won't go wrong with Norton AntiVirus 2001 or PC-cillin 2000, or with BlackICE Defender or ZoneAlarm Pro. But laptop security has another dimension: Even if a hacker can't download your data, a thief can carry it off.

Portable but illegible: Though most thieves steal portables simply for the hardware, 10 to 15 percent of laptop thefts are targeted at valuable data, according to Gartner Group vice president William Malik.

For data protection, we chose PC Guardian's Road Guardian Survival Package. This $100 suite combines physical security--an antitheft cable with a lock--and file security in the form of Encryption Plus, which provides 192-bit encryption of files and e-mail. It's easy to use: Encryption is automatic for the files you designate, and files are automatically re-encrypted when you close them. Encryption Plus also supports e-mail encryption.

Calling for help: For an annual subscription fee of $50, Computrace provides software that periodically "phones home" (the Computrace monitoring center) when the notebook is attached to a LAN, a broadband line, or a dial-up connection. And a thief will have no idea the software is installed: It runs in stealth mode and can survive hard-drive reformatting. If you report your notebook stolen, Computrace and your local police will work to recover it.

Finally, sometimes a low-tech solution can save the day. The aptly named StuffBak provides labels that you attach to your laptop (or virtually anything else). Each label costs $2 and contains a message offering a reward for the item's return, a toll-free number, and a serial number that you register on the company's Web site. If an item is found, you pay shipping charges and a $10 service fee to retrieve it. Obviously, thieves are unlikely to use StuffBak labels to return your PC; but if it's simply lost, or stolen and later disposed of, you may get it back.

--Stan Miastkowski