A new study concludes that flyers lose more than 10,000 laptop computers each week in this country’s 36 largest airports. More disconcerting, perhaps, the study by the Ponemon Institute says flyers fail to reclaim 70 percent of those machines. Ouch.
Among the revelations:
– At megaports such as Los Angeles International (LAX), Miami (MIA), and New York Kennedy (JFK) as many as 1,000 laptops go missing each week, and 70 percent of them remain that way;
– Security checkpoints, departure areas, and passenger clubs or lounges are the locus of most of the lost laptops. Cheapflights suggests extra vigilance here. In security, keep the computer in sight at all times. In the gate area, if you pull it to work or surf, make sure you pack it up and take it with you even if it’s just to grab a sandwich or a drink. Keep the strap around your shoulder at all times, crossways across your chest. Don’t carry it by the handle. That makes it easier to put down. At airport clubs, the same suggestion applies. Don’t presume just because you’re in the confines of a pay-for-use enclave that your valuables are safe;
– More than 70 percent of business flyers feel rushed when trying to get to their flights, and 60 percent of them worry that delays at security checkpoints will force them to miss those flights. Cheapflights’ experience is that it’s precisely in such situations that things fall through the cracks;
– Fifty-three percent of business travelers say their laptops contain confidential or sensitive information – but 65 percent of these folks concede they don’t take steps to protect or secure that data.
If you’re interested to see how your local airport fares when it comes to lost laptops visit the Dell Web site.
© Cheapflights Ltd Jerry Chandler
