Visibility Equals Money Saved

In education, the incorporation of computers is becoming progressively more prevalent — school districts, colleges and universities are increasingly relying on mobile computers to enhance teaching and learning. This, however, introduces new challenges for IT staff: They must manage mobile computers cost effectively and reduce the risk of missing laptops, whether from theft, loss or users forgetting to return them.

According to the Ponemon Institute, 12,000 laptops are lost in U.S. airports each week, and two-thirds of them are never returned.  Additionally, laptop theft accounted for 42 percent of reported security attacks, according to CSI, the 13th Annual Computer Crime and Security Survey, 2008.

Because the repercussions of lost and stolen laptops are so severe — a single lost laptop can cost an average of $49,000 when you factor in multiple factors including data breaches2 — mitigating these effects is of the utmost importance.

In the education environment, not only do these situations hurt an already crippled budget, but they also put students, faculty and staff at risk. This crippled budget, coupled with necessary increased data security regulations, means that schools, colleges and universities are facing the perfect storm for IT.

Given these statistics and knowledge that such a storm is imminent, why should educational institutions — whose pocketbooks are already hurting — sit back and lose even more money in the form of technology?

They shouldn’t, and this storm is an avoidable one: It’s as simple as installing special software on the machines that districts and universities wish to protect.

To learn about the cost savings, return on investment, and how many school districts and universities that have implemented computer tracking and theft prevention software have benefited, read Visibility Equals Money Saved.