추천되지 않는 PCPhoneHome
만약에 나가 차에 있는 나의 휴대용 퍼스널 컴퓨터를, 잠시 동안 넣어두면 무엇이 누구 그것을 떨어져 찢었는가? 또는, 생각을 비명에 죽는가, 누구는 침입하고 나의 좋은 새로운 컴퓨터를 가지고 갔는가? 그것은 법인과 공공 구역으로, 특히 항상 일어난다, 그러나 확실하게 개인에 역시 일어난다. 14의 휴대용 퍼스널 컴퓨터에 대하여 누구든은 훔치고, 몇몇 전문가를 밝힌다.
그러나 만약에 저 훔친 휴대용 퍼스널 컴퓨터 또는 컴퓨터가 도둑에 의해 위로 강화되고, 인터넷에, 연결되면 무엇 어디에 있던지 기술해 원래 소유자 등을 맞댄 전자 우편을 보내고? 그리고 만약에 "누구가" 그 때 경찰에게 도둑의 이름 및 주소를 말할 수 있으면 무엇?
저것은 무엇이다 PCPhoneHome 하고 가정된다. 그것은 $30 의 겸손한 1차성 책임을 요한다. 창 버전 및 Mac 버전이 있다. 당신은 컴퓨터의 하드드라이브에 컴퓨터가 당신이 지정하는 어떤 이메일 주소든지 전자 우편을 보내는 새로운 인터넷 연결을 얻는다 언제든지 그것을, 설치하고. 이것은, 매일매일 일정하게 일어나고, 컴퓨터가 훔치면 않는 한 조금 를 제외하고 아직도 작동하고 있다는 것을 알게 했다 당신이 유익한다. 그러나 컴퓨터가 훔치는 경우에, 저 전자 우편은 그것의 로컬 네트워크에 컴퓨터의 IP 주소, 무엇이든을, 및 전자 우편이 실제로 보내지는 메일 서버의 특히 IP 주소를 포함하여 생명 정보를 포함하는 경우에. 저 IP 주소는 메일 서버에 그때 연락된 사용자 등을 맞댄 추적될 수 있다.
Brigadoon 소프트웨어, PCPhoneHome 의 컴퓨터를 추적하고 저 정보를 가진 경찰에게 연락하기의 업무로 돕는 약속의 제작자. 이렇게, $30의 가격을 위해, 당신은 당신의 컴퓨터를 돌려받을지도 모른다 Brigadoon가 실제로 그들의 전화에 응답하고 PC를 추적할 것이라고, 그리고 경찰에 의하여 PC를 만회하는 시간이 걸릴 것이라고 추정하는 보험 증권을 사고 있다.
나는 3개의 예심 사본을 다운로드했다:
Windows XP를 달리는 휴대용 퍼스널 컴퓨터:
버전 3.0는 30일간 예심을 위해 설치된 "표준" 버전이다. 비스타에 작동한ㄴ다는 것을 밝히지 않는다, 그러나 XP에 한다. 그것은 나의 휴대용 컴퓨터의 세부사항으로 문제 없이, 나 서류에 작성했다 설치했다 (의 serial#, 좀더… 만드십시오, 만드십시오) 그리고 그것은 나가 모양에서 지정한 주소에 즉시 그것의 첫번째 전자 우편을 보냈다. 휴대용 퍼스널 컴퓨터는 WiFi에 의해 연결되고, 나가 근거리 통신망에 그것을 직접적으로 연결할 때 다른 전자 우편을 보냈다. 실제로, 그것은 주소와 경미하게 다른 것에 2 전자 우편을, 무엇인가의 이유로 언제나 보낸다. 문제될 것 없습니다 없음. So far, after three days, it works just fine.
New home-built desktop running Vista Ultimate 64-Bit:
I knew that Version 3.0 was not recommended for Vista, even though that was the standard trial download from Brigadoon Software. So I downloaded a 3.2 “upgrade” version and tried installing that, with a subsequent comedy of errors:
- First, the installation program failed to run because, according to Windows, I did not have sufficient privileges to run it even though I was logged on as administrator;
- So I clicked on the installation program’s Properties, then Compatibility, and selected “Run as Administrator;”
- Then the installation program went a lot farther, but eventually reported a different error;
- It continued past that error and put up the “registration” screen which takes data to be included in the email that PCPhoneHome sends, but because of the reported error I didn’t bother to fill out the screen;
- Nevertheless, the installer said the installation was successful, though I knew better;
- I uninstalled it (still possible until reboot), and tried again;
- Same results, so I rebooted;
- PCPhoneHome disappeared from the list in Programs and Features - it could no longer be uninstalled. This is a security feature built into PCPhoneHome;
- So I “reverted” the drive to the most recent restore point, deleted one leftover executable, and started over;
- This time, surprisingly, the installation went well. I filled out the “registration” screen and allowed it to reboot the computer.
- After logon, Windows alerted me that an “unknown” program XYZ (I won’t disclose the name here) wanted to run and asked me if that was OK;
- I said yes. Pretty soon I received the two emails. Yay!;
- Sadly, though, upon each succesive reboot, Windows continues to ask whether program XYZ can run;
- I have modified “User Account Control” (UAC) in Windows Vista so that this no longer occurs, but of course this modification is unacceptable for the long term. UAC is a pain in the ass, but it has a purpose and should be turned ON for day-to-day activities.
- I requested a technical service response by email on January 25, but so far have not received any.
Friend’s laptop running Vista Home Edition 32-Bit:
Wow I’m SO SORRY that I tried PCPhoneHome on this computer. I tried downloading the official trial version and installing that first, as most users would do. Of course it didn’t work, because that version is not for Vista, so then I downloaded the upgrade and tried to install that on top of the first install. The resulting comedy of errors totally eclipsed anything that I had encountered with the desktop installation, and it still doesn’t work. I have installed a lot of software on many different machines, but this takes the cake. I have requested a technical service response by telephone and by email, but so far have not received any.
Bottom line: I DO NOT RECOMMEND PCPhoneHome FOR VISTA.
In my opinion, it works fine on XP but is not ready for Vista yet. It phones home on only one of my two Vista installations. There is a workaround for the XYZ “unknown program” prompt at bootup, but that workaround simply trades one security risk for another. Brigadoon Software must fix that problem somehow, perhaps by getting valid “digital signatures” for their software.
Perhaps this is all my fault for installing it on both Vista systems incorrectly. But I don’t think so; I suspect anyone running Vista with UAC turned on will experience similar problems. If true, that’s an astounding failure, since:
- The most-easily-stolen computers are laptops;
- Almost all laptops sold in the last YEAR run Vista;
- UAC is turned on by default in all new Vista systems;
- Brigadoon Software had months BEFORE THAT to prepare for Vista; so
- They are about two years behind the curve and falling further behind daily.
It’s as if Brigadoon is a one- or two-person shop, too busy to take the time and do the testing necessary to make their product really install and run correctly. What happens then, I know from experience, is that you spend so much time dealing with tech service questions that you have no time to fix the product. Meanwhile you are selling more of the junky product and compounding your problems. I’m only speculating here though …
Other Issues:
- If your computer is stolen and does phone home, will Brigadoon Software actually answer their telephone and trace an email for you? When I called their telephone number this afternoon during regular business hours, I got an answering machine and no callback today. This is not what you want, because the computer may soon evaporate into the black market and never call home again. I see other remarks on the internet which indicate that this is a real question. I will update this post and add a new post when/if I hear from them regarding my pre-sales technical service problems.
- One very good thing: My computers are set up to require a password for my own logon, to prevent access to my account through the network, and also through the keyboard if the computer were to be stolen. On both the XP and the Vista desktop system, if I booted up and did NOT log on, the computer sent the email anyway. Thus if a thief were sitting at the keyboard trying various passwords, and made the mistake of connecting the computer to the internet first, the email would be on its way.
- But what if the thief didn’t connect to the internet before logging on? In another part of the FAQ document, Brigadoon goes into great detail to show how to set up a computer so that it will boot up with one account which does NOT have a password. They don’t spell out WHY we should do that, because it obviously reduces the system’s security. But I suppose if I were the thief, I might try each of the usernames on the logon screen, looking for one with no password. If found, I might start with that account, and might even use that account to connect to the internet. Obviously, that account should not have administrator privileges!
- Brigadoon makes another good point in their FAQ document: It’s important to set up a password to the BIOS of a computer, and then set the BIOS to boot first from hard disk, not floppy or CD/DVD or memory stick. This prevents a thief from using an alternate boot to simply reformat the disk and install a new operating system, thereby obliterating the PCPhoneHome program. In case YOU have a problem with the hard disk, you simply enter the password and change the BIOS back to allow boot from alternate devices. Of course the thief can still remove the hard drive and reformat it some other way, but that’s more work and by then the computer may already have phoned home.
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Alan Jones
#1. February 5th, 2008, at 3:11 AM.
Ok, I was considering buing pcphonehome for the laptops at my department but after reading your article and some others i decided against it. Its useless if there is no support organisation behind it. Do you have any suggestion about any other system to track stolen laptops?