William Penn University chooses Absolute to protect endpoints in student laptop program

• 网络安全和隐私 - 端点安全
• 网络安全和隐私 - 安全合规

• 教育

• 商业运营

• 远程资产管理
• 盗窃检测

• 网络安全服务
• 系统集成

While the CWA student laptop program is viewed a success by everyone involved, the Information Services Department at William Penn saw two significant challenges to the program: lost or stolen laptop computers, and students dropping out and not returning their laptops to the University. “We had a real problem with laptops not being returned to the College after students withdrew from their programs without graduating” says Dan Morgan, Director of Information Services and Curtis Gomes, Information Technology Supervisor at CWA.

Founded in 1873, William Penn University is a small, private liberal arts college located in Oskaloosa, Iowa. While the campus is steeped in history, its approach to learning is very modern, beginning with the student laptop computer program at the University’s College for Working Adults (CWA). Each CWA student is provided with a laptop for use inside and outside the classroom, allowing continuous, hands-on computer use. The campus network features Internet access from every building, enabling students and faculty to enjoy all the benefits of portability.

After some initial research, Morgan and Gomes found a solution that would assist them in minimizing the effects and occurrences of both: Absolute DDS, an adaptive endpoint security solution for computers, tablets, and smartphones. Not long after implementing, Morgan and Gomes noticed a marked improvement in the rate of returned laptops by drop-out students. “Our investment in Absolute is helping pay for itself by the incentive provided by the remote Data Delete function,” said Gomes. “We can perform any number of reports and operations remotely, from deleting the My Documents folder to removing the operating system, which effectively disables the computer. We’ve only had to do this a few times, however, because word got out pretty quickly that we could do this, and now this particular problem has all but disappeared. The Investigations service has also been utilized, with remarkable success. When a student had her laptop stolen from her car, Absolute helped get it back. Within weeks of the theft, the Des Moines Police Department had the laptop in their possession – and the University yet more proof that their investment in Absolute was money in the bank.

• Through endpoint security actions, such as device freeze and data delete, William Penn University are able to reach out to remote devices, discouraging student theft.
• William Penn University gained the ability to view all devices, and receive proactive alerts on any changes.
• With assistance from the Absolute Investigations team, William Penn University were able to recover stolen devices.

• Marked improvement in the rate of returned laptops by drop-out students.
• Successful recovery of stolen laptops within weeks.