The #1 Security Risk on Earth

I'm as guilty as anyone: I panic about viruses, spyware, and evil hackers breaking into my system via my cable modem and wireless networks. I even shred my junk mail.

But year after year, the biggest computer security risk is none of these things: It's old-fashioned theft, particularly of laptops, which are easy to grab and even easier to unload through pawn shops, auction sites, or any number of underground sales outlets.

Bank of America found this out the hard way: It just lost 18,000 customer records when a notebook was stolen out of a car. Same goes for 80,000 Department of Justice workers and 161,000 Boeing employees. No viruses. No intricate overseas scam. Just a busted window and a thief with quick feet.

What's the answer? A renewed focus on physical security, of course: I've written about the Kensington lock before, and it should go without saying that you should never, ever leave a laptop in an automobile. (Some of those stolen notebooks were in cars with unlocked doors, believe it or not.)

But also consider what you would do even if you lost a notebook to theft: Even with the worst spyware and viruses you can usually recover your data. With a stolen machine, you aren't so lucky. Back up your data and keep it in a different location than your PC. If plugging in hard drives or DVD-RW discs is too much work for you, check out online backup services, which do the heavy lifting for you. I'll write more about these in an upcoming blog post in the next few weeks, so stay tuned.