Frequently Asked Questions
We are very sorry, but we can only recover a computer that has the Trackion software installed on it prior to the loss.
First and foremost, report it to your local law enforcement agency. This is a critical step that will help us with our efforts to recover your machine.
Next you'll want to fill out a missing device report. Click Here if you need to report your device lost or stolen.
Finally, just sit back and relax. Trackion is on the case 24/7 and should have your lost or stolen computer back in your hands in no time.
Yes. Trackion works worldwide.
We are so confident that Trackion will enable us to recover your lost or stolen computer that we offer you two money-back guarantees! If we can not recover your stolen computer, we give you a FULL refund. Of course we still offer our traditional money-back guarantee: if you are not completely satisfied with Trackion, you will get a full refund within 30 days of purchase. No questions asked.
You can prevent this by installing a firmware or BIOS password. See the sections below on this topic within this FAQ.
No. In addition to protecting your laptop, Trackion can be used to protect your desktop as well.
All Internet communications are based on IP address, which are a unique finger print for every PC at the time of communication. When a stolen or lost PC's IP address is captured by Trackion, it is traced to the owner of that IP domain (a company, an ISP or a government agency, etc.). Trackion then contacts the administrator of that domain to determine who is using the device.
From there, depending on the nature of the loss, we can contact that person or pass the details onto law enforcement officials to recover the lost or stole laptop.
Yes! Simply uninstall the service from your existing device and then reinstall it on your new laptop using the same username and password. Don't forget to log in to your account and update your laptop details so you have a current record of the device using our service.
Your devices location is derived by it's IP address, while in most cases this should be enough information for us to be able to correlate to a specific city, some ISPs will route all traffic thru a central location in a near by major city. Rest assured, as long as we have the IP we can track your device back to the ISP that owns that block and help you retrieve your device. If you would like to help us out and have this information updated to reflect the correct city please send us a email service@trackion.com with your username and actual location. We will update the information in our location databases.
While we strive to keep our location data as up to date as possible, we will encounter newer IP addresses that we have not entered into our location database yet.
If your location is not showing up please send us an email service@trackion.com with your username and location. We will update the information in our location databases.
Yes. Our site is secured with 256-bit encryption. Please feel free to review our credentials
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When you first log into the Trackion system we ask that you to register some basic information (make, model, serial number, etc.) about the device we are protecting. Without this information we cannot protect your machine as this is information you may or may not have available if your computer is lost or stolen. This information is invaluable to our recovery efforts.
The most likely answer is: you have not yet installed the Trackion Client. Click here to download it now.
Another possible answer is: you have not yet registered a device with Trackion. You can log in to your account and register one now.
If you have installed the Trackion client, registed your device and it has been active on a machine connected to the Internet for more than an hour please contact us so we can help troubleshoot your specific issue.
Our developers have taken every step to minimize the amount of interaction necessary with the tracking software, but as new updates to firewall / Internet security software are released it increases the chances our software will be detected while contacting our security center. The easiest solution is to allow the program access to the internet (you should only have to make this choice once, the tracking software will then be granted access). If you need assistance please email our support staff service@trackion.com.
Advanced Firewall / Internet Security Software Configuration
If you would like to restrict the program to its specific ports please allow it to communicate via TCP/IP on port 80 and port 443. For further configuration details or assistance, please email our support staff service@trackion.com.
The process of formatting the main hard disk requires booting from a floppy or CD-ROM. You must use some method to prevent booting from them. Ignoring this step can reduce the effectiveness of Trackion. There are a number of methods to prevent booting from a floppy disk from physical disk locks to purchased security programs. But the simplest and safest solution is to use the Open Firmware Password Application provided by Apple.
The Open Firmware Password application allows you to enable security features in Open Firmware. You can use it to prevent others from starting your computer using a CD or other disk with an operating system on it. You can use Firmware password protection to enhance access security to your computer.
When you set a Firmware password, it prevents others from starting up the computer from a volume other than the one you have chosen as the startup disk (chosen in the Startup Disk preference panel within the System Preferences.) Once security is enabled, you cannot startup from other devices such as an external FireWire disk, a CD-ROM drive, or another partition or disk inside the computer.
Requirements
This application requires Firmware update 4.1.7 or a later version and Macintosh OS X 10.1 or later.
Installing the Firmware Password Application
* Drag the application icon from the disk image to your hard disk. Using the Application.
* Make sure that you have selected the Macintosh OS X System folder for your startup device that your plan to protect. If your startup device is correctly selected, you should be able to select it in the Startup Disk preference pane, close the preference pane, and not receive a dialog box prompting you to save the changes. If you do receive this dialog, saving the changes will set your startup device. Important: If you reset the PRAM or Open Firmware, you need to reselect your startup device prior to resetting the Open Firmware Password.
* Double click the application icon to open it.
* Click the "Change" button to modify the security settings.
* If you are enabling the security features, enter a password into the Password and Verify boxes.
* Click OK.
* Follow the prompts to enter your System Administrator account.
When security is enabled, all keys that affect the normal start up of the computer are disabled. For example, you cannot start the computer from the internal CD drive by holding down the C key. If you wish to use special key sequences to startup, you must disable your Firmware security by using the Open Firmware Password application.
You can, however, temporarily use a different startup disk if you hold down the Option key while the computer is turned on. You are asked to enter the security password. Once the password is entered correctly, you can select the icon of the disk you want to use.
You can further protect your computer after it has been lost or stolen by disabling booting from a floppy or CD drive in the computers BIOS.
It is also good idea to configure a password for the BIOS, so no one else can enter the BIOS and change the setting back re-enabling floppy and CD drive booting.
With the BIOS password set, floppy and CD drive booting disabled, the computer hard drive is now protected from being erased by installing another fresh copy of the operating system.
To configure a BIOS password and disable the floppy and CD drives from booting, you will need to enter BIOS configuration. Entering BIOS configuration differs from computer to computer. Refer to your computer documentation for detailed information.
BIOS configuration screens vary by manufacturer!
Normally you can enter the BIOS configuration by pressing DEL key or F2 key when the computer starts to boot.
You will first need to configure and set a password for the BIOS setup. Make sure to set the Supervisor Password, not the boot password. In order to retrieve the lost computer, we want the finder or thief to connect to Internet so we can track and retrieve the lost or stolen device.
To configure the Supervisor Password,
* Select SUPERVISOR PASSWORD.
* You will be prompt to enter the password and confirm.
* Write this password down! It is not stored anywhere accessible.
To disable booting from the floppy and CD drives,
* Select BIOS Features Setup.
* Below BIOS Features Setup window will appear.
* Disable booting from everything but the primary hard disk drive.
You will need to save the changes you have made in order of it to take place. Select 'Save & Exit Setup' from the menu as shown below. This will save your changes and exit the BIOS setup.