July 9, 2009 Left behind laptops
This is weird. And disturbing.
Last year Dell computers commissioned a study that found that 12,000 laptops are lost each week at U.S. airports. Los Angeles leads the pack with 1,200 laptops reported lost or stolen at LAX weekly. Incredibly, most laptops are left behind at security checkpoints, with only 33 percent ever being recovered (17 percent before the flight, 16 percent after).
Now, part of our shock about these numbers comes from the absent-mindedness of travelers who lose sight of a valuable piece of luggage — and one that they probably need to conduct their business or lives at the other end of their flights. But another thought comes to mind: Why don’t the TSA screeners call after people who have left their notebook computers behind — are they themselves too busy? do they assume such left luggage is dangerous and immediately dunk the laptops in a bucket of water?
…”We get belts,” says McFarland who works in Bob Hope’s lost and found department. “Everyone leave their belts, cell phones, clothing items, thumb drives, keys, watches. I’ve read about the laptops, but I don’t get those — TSA has them.” (LA Weekly)
This Yahoo Tech blogger was skeptical and claims he has verified these astounding numbers:
That’s not a mistake in the headline. I checked it twice…
Blame it on the harried and fragile mental state of the modern traveler, so rushed to get to his flight on time that key belongings are left behind. TSA often tries to alert passengers that they’ve left something behind — and it’s much more than just a bunch of laptops; wallets, belts, keys, and everything else is often forgotten — but that people rarely make it back once they’ve left the checkpoint.
Notes LA Weekly: “TSA screeners will page travelers by name when their identities are known. Still, [one] employee says, travelers will often later admit they heard their names on the public address system after leaving the security checkpoint — but somehow didn’t make the connection that they were being asked to recover lost items.” The story calls modern travelers universally “spaced-out.”
Reader Comments (6)
It doesn't surprise me. A friend of mine was a gate agent for a big airline. According to her, the airline employees quickly came up with a theory about people in airports. They say there is a force field surrounding the airport; as soon as the traveler steps in, his brain is left behind.
Seriously though, most people are very intimidated by airports and/or in a hurry. If people can forget children in their cars, why wouldn't they forget a laptop?
Those are shockingly high numbers. I'd go a long way to get my laptop back. Not only in terms of having to buy another one but also in terms of personal info that's on it. I have back-ups of my most important docs and also the address book, of course. But still, I wouldn't want that stuff to be accessible without my authorization.
That said, does anyone know where one can get an alu macbook laser engraved?
Unbelievable! But at the same time, having watched people in airports, they do seem to go into a sort of zombie mode.
When my husband and I travel together, one of us goes through the metal detector first and stands at the end of the x-ray conveyor belt to catch our stuff while the other is still coming through. That at least stops any thief picking up our bags etc. I can say I've never forgotten what I've put through the machine, but then I've been flying and using airports for 44 years.....I guess I'm immune to the airport forcefield. ;-)
So where do all those left-behind laptops go?
I can believe that the laptops are left behind. People get distracted and don't think.
As for where they go, some govt agency probably sells them at auction or to a wholesaler. I shudder at the amount of personal and corporate information on those hard drives.
I left my passport behind once at screening in Amsterdam Schipol. It took me a little while to twig that they were actually calling out my name over the tannoy. It was just quite unexpected.
In a separate incident, I mislaid my boarding pass somewhere in Dublin airport. That never showed up, but they did let me on the flight anyway. I now try and have a designated place in my hand luggage for in-flight documents and make more of an effort to put them away as soon as possible. I'm not sure it's an ifallible solution though.