Think about it - What other piece of equipment or personal possession do we routinely carry around that is worth over a thousand dollars, by itself, and may be worth thousands more in data? Why wouldn't that be attractive to thieves? A large part of the problem is less on the hardware or software end of things, it's in the HUMAN side of things. By raising our awareness many of the vulnerabilities can be greatly lessened. There are 3 areas of vulnerability: 1) Securing the actual laptop, 2) Securing the Data, 3) Getting the laptop back.