Undercover Mac

Because laptops are increasingly popular, and desktops are becoming smaller and more portable, computer theft has reached huge proportions worldwide. According to a recent FBI report, 97% of all stolen computers are never recovered. Many people we know have had their Macs stolen, often in 'safe' situations. That's why we developed Undercover: a unique theft-recovery application designed from the ground up for Mac OS X.

Undercover 3.2 is the first theft-recovery software in the world to go 64-bit (1). The 64-bit version of Undercover not only runs faster, it is also more secure. That's because 64-bit applications can use more advanced security techniques to fend off attacks. Undercover automatically detects whether it is running on a 64-bit capable Mac and switches accordingly.

Installation
Upon installation, you'll receive an Undercover ID that's unique for the Mac you are installing Undercover on. This ID is very important: it will enable you to start the theft-recovery process. Note that for your own privacy, we can not monitor or recover your Mac without this code.

Routine checks
When your Mac is online, Undercover routinely checks whether the Mac it is running on is reported as stolen. Unlike any other theft recovery software on the market, Undercover will not send any identifying information from your Mac to our server if your Mac has not been stolen. This makes the entire concept more secure and respects your privacy.

In case of theft
As soon as your Mac is stolen, you send us the Undercover ID you received upon registration. We will add this code to our list of stolen Macs.

The first phase
The next time your stolen Mac goes online (using dial-up, WiFi, ethernet, Bluetooth, ...) it will notice that its Undercover ID is flagged as stolen. This will initiate the first phase, in which Undercover will send geographical information based on the built-in Skyhook Wireless technology, the same technology used in the iPhone and iPod Touch. This will enable us to accurately locate your stolen Mac within a 10-20 meter range. In addition, Undercover transmits network information and screenshots of your stolen Mac. Together with law enforcement, we work to recover the Mac. If your Mac has a built-in iSight, or if the thief attached an external iSight, Undercover will send iSight pictures of the thief. Think of it as running Photo Booth in the background.

Plan B
If law enforcement fails to recover the stolen Mac, Undercover switches to plan B. In this mode, Undercover will simulate a screen failure, slowly making the Mac's screen unusable. At this point, we think the thief has two options: to send the computer to a reseller for repair, or to get rid of it by selling it on the Net. In either case, Undercover will show a full-screen message alerting the reseller or someone who bought the Mac from the thief that the Mac has been stolen, that it has become unusable and that it needs to be returned as soon as possible. Our contact information and a promise for a finder's fee (which will be covered by us) will be displayed as well. This message can be fully customized by the user and when dismissed, this message will instantly reappear. Additionally, your Mac will start shouting at the highest volume level, using its built-in text-to-speech capabilities. You can decide when Undercover switches to plan B and what message is displayed. Note that this message is NOT displayed to the thief.

Recovery
Because of the message Undercover displays, technicians will quickly notice that the Mac has been stolen. As soon as you get back your Mac, we will remove it from our database of stolen Macs. Your Mac will immediately start to behave normally, as if nothing happened. Undercover can not be disabled by the thief. If you install Apple's firmware password, your Mac can not be formatted without knowing your firmware password.

Undercover runs on any Mac with Mac OS X Tiger (10.4) or Leopard (10.5) on both PPC and Intel Macs. However, it has been optimized for Snow Leopard, running in 64-bit and taking advantage of Core Location.