"if it was stolen" do you really have to destroy it aye? K-12 they dont keep "top-secret-classified-4eyesonly" stuff, yes?

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I thought this was about the government or the CIA at first. I had to re-read the title.

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I'll eat my own hat if iPhoto v2 doesn't have GPS in it

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in Maine where there is a state 1:1 program with ibook and macbooks the reasons for security is to minimize theft. If there are things in place to make the resale of the laptop difficult or suspicious then it should lessen their initial theft.

I'd like to know what type of sticker destroys the laptop.

Also, it's real easy to take the hard drive out of the Macbook. Small price to pay for a macbook.

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"a remote device to destroy the hard drive"

Not needed if it has a Seagate drive in it already. It will destroy itself soon enough.

http://www.tuaw.com/2007/11/07/reported-seagate-drive-failures-may-affect-mac-laptops/

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The headline here is entirely misleading. The article clearly states that "District officials have taken several measures to prevent theft." You think Apple "customized" their MacBooks by applying the "property of" stickers?

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@ Mr. Stafford — "I'd like to know what type of sticker destroys the laptop."

It's not the sticker that destroys the laptop. It's the attempted removal of it... My high school provided all students with iBooks (I'd assume now they've upgraded to MacBooks) that were loaned throughout the duration of their school career. These laptops had a metal "sticker" attached that were basically unremovable. Even if the removal didn't destroy it, a big ugly mark on the computer might deter potential buyers of hot merchandise.

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We have the same program in our local schools here in NC. You would probably break the plastic case of the MacBook before you could pull these security plates off.

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Patrick has this exactly right. There is nothing in the article that clearly states any such customization from Apple. From the stickers to the porn filter to the GPS tracker, these are attributed to "District officials" who "have taken several measures to prevent theft."
The GPS tracker, provided it is not just some USB dongle, is the only thing that would really benefit from Apple's pre-sale modifications.

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Though this is apparently not new, I think it's interesting that Apple is willing to customize bulk orders for customers. It makes them more appealing to potential business customers, that's for certain.

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Kansas school districts will be affixing another sticker advising students that the superiority of OS X is just a theory, not a fact.

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Yeh, the only way to get the sticker off is to have at it with a pocket knife or screwdriver. You'd break the plastic by doing so. It's not really a sticker, it's a thin metal plate with some really really strong adhesive. Anyone who planned on keeping it around campus would have a hard time concealing the fact that they stole it. Try selling it on eBay with a big honkin (& suspicious) hole in it.

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I wish you wouldn't just re-word Appleinsider, and say things like Apple is going to extra lengths for security just in these laptops. And if you want to know how the stickers work, here are the stickers KC Kansas have on the laptops. http://www.stoptheft.com/site/index.php

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lol-now that's a feature that you can order for Dell pc's for years now...

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@Tyrone Rugen: hilarious

I want to know how they add GPS tracking internally on MacBooks. I'd like to do it to my own. Mat Lu, this is my Ask TUAW.

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I bought an old 12" ibook used that originated from the Kansas school system (they sell the laptops used after a few years). It had a hot foil stamp saying it was their property on the back bonded hard to the plastic. Nothing could get rid of that. Well a can of Fusion red spray paint did, but that was not to hide that logo, that was to make my laptop colorful. http://www.gregorycohen.com/redibook.jpg

-GReg

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I hope those school boards aren't offended that Leopard is an evolutionary OS. :)

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I don't see why you people get so worked up about this. Apple's been supplying laptops to my county for ~6-10 years now. Well, I'm pretty sure there's no GPS tracker on ours, but other than that, we DO have a customized version of the OS. And a sticker.

The sticker that we have on ours takes about 600 pounds of force to rip it off, and after observing it, I'm pretty sure it involves magnets in some way.

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Apple customizing Macbooks for K-12?

That's a laugh. As if that's going to benefit public education at all.

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