[OLPC Security] Anti-theft and Anti-Sale ideas for Nepal
Carl-Daniel Hailfinger
c-d.hailfinger.devel.2006 at gmx.net
Mon Feb 19 12:17:10 EST 2007
Hi,
Bryan Berry wrote:
> I really like Bitfrost's P_THEFT protection option where the laptop could
> "phone home" to renew its 21-day operating lease. W/out that operating
> lease, the laptop will shutdown. However, that is not ideal for Nepal, at
> least for the next several years. Consistent internet access in remote
> districts will remain prohibitively expense for at least the next several
> years.
>
> Nepal could use a modified P_THEFT to discourage sales by hungry kids and
> alcoholic Dads or general theft. The number one use for sold laptops will
> be Internet access and they would primarily end up in Nepal's larger cities
> or abroad -->Bangkok's Panthip electronics market.
What is the average wage of a person skilled enough to disassemble a laptop
in Nepal? Assuming that P_THEFT can be circumvented with an hour of physical
access to the laptop, will any sophisticated theft protection work at all?
Yes, it may discourage the casual buyer, but if a laptop is sold to somebody
skilled enough (a local crime syndicate will have someone handy), it becomes
a question of return-of-investment.
* Acquire the laptop from alcoholic dad - ($20)
* Pay somebody to remove P_THEFT - ($5)
* Sell the laptop - $80
-----------------------
* Profit - $55
Now please tell me how you want to stop that sort of business.
Remember that removing P_THEFT includes removal of any activation and phone-
home software.
Regards,
Carl-Daniel
--
http://www.hailfinger.org/
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