secondhand computer and Anti theft software

[kefegg]

Hi all,

I just bought a secondhand laptop which was restored by the previous owner. He told me to make the systemrestore discs myself because of possible settings or software I wanna install before making those discs.
I didn't had any problems with that so I started to make the restore discs.

While doing this, I was searching some more info about the laptop I bought and I came across a page with privacy issues when buying secondhand IT stuff.
Some people install Anti Theft software on there laptop and smartphones and they, sometimes, do not remove it. On purpose or not... we leave that one open.
Now my question is, can you detect this software? Remove it, uninstall it... Because I don't have a clean install disc with Win7 on it I can't make a clean installation.
I found some details about prey, like that it nests itself invisible and sends pictures taken from the webcam...
I guess you all can image what funny or unpleasant pictures could been taken.

In my case, we are talking about a Sony Vaio VPCEB3E1E. I searched the services, systemfolder and programfolder but I can't find anything that looks unfamiliar to me.
Maybe Hijack this?

thanks

 

[timswim78]

If you are genuinely concerned about, you can wipe the hard drive and reinstall Windows. You can download Windows 7 from Microsoft and use the license key on your laptop. If you need any drivers, they are available on Sony's website.

After getting it setup the way that you want it, you can use the built in backup tool to make restore discs.

 

[jjsbasmt]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't programs like LoJack run from the BIOS, in concert with a hidden protected area on the HD, so reformatting the HD is not effective. As I understand it, these programs are more or less invisible otherwise.

 

[Modelworks]

Very few laptops make use of hardware based theft programs. Most are software only. Watch the network traffic it sends and you will see if there is anything suspicious taking place.

 

[FoxFifth]

LoJack appears to be difficult to remove; their site gives some information about how to turn it off if you have the password. The following is from: http://www.absolute.com/en/lojackforlaptops/support/faqs/technology.aspx

"Persistence Module: Installed in the BIOS (or the firmware) of most laptops at the factory and activated during the first call of the Application Agent to the Absolute Monitoring Center. It restores the Application Agent if it's been removed. For example, if a thief steals a computer and reinstalls the operating system, the Persistence Module restores the Agent. The Persistence Module remains dormant until the Application Agent is installed."

"If our Computrace Agent was embedded in the BIOS (or firmware) of your computer, and you purchased our software to activate it then LoJack for Laptops will reinstall itself even if a system restore, hard drive reformat, or a hard drive replacement occurs."

 

[Fayd]

bios flash the laptop, then install the OS from one of the OS disks available for download. check google for "official windows 7 downloads" then use the key the laptop has taped to its underside in the installation of windows.

 

[FoxFifth]

bios flash the laptop, then install the OS from one of the OS disks available for download. check google for "official windows 7 downloads" then use the key the laptop has taped to its underside in the installation of windows.

Regarding bios flash, the following quote is from the same link: http://www.absolute.com/en/lojackforlaptops/support/faqs/technology.aspx

"What happens if I flash my BIOS? Will I need to reinstall the software?
No. If the Persistence Module in the BIOS has been enabled, the self-healing capability will repair the Agent software and your computer will still be protected. The enable/disable state of the Persistence Module is stored in a part of the BIOS that cannot be flashed to remove it"

 

[kefegg]

I asked the guy, where I bought the laptop from, and he insured me that there is nothing like that installed before.
But I see that my question isn't a stupid one. I actually thought that It would be much easier to remove stuff like that. But bios nested and recoverable by itself...
If every laptop-user would install this kind of software It wouldn't be worth to steal a laptop, or is this surrealistic?

But this been said, so I could download a legal version of Windows, right?
I use the code on the back of the Vaio and after installing I go to Sony Vayo site to download and install the drivers.

I'm gonna check that out because now, after reset to "new-state" and making the recover dvd's, the system is running with more then 80 services. Most of them are sony ware and some useless gadget things.