I'm a mobile person who loves to travel. Naturally my Treo is always at my side. I believe quick access to information anywhere is a tremendous advantage. It's great to have e-mail, contacts, calendar and PIM data always at hand.

But with data mobility comes concerns about security. I have had hand bags stolen right out from under my nose. My pockets were picked in an airport. I once lost a device during a hurried exit from a taxi. I don't want my personal information falling into the wrong hands.

The problem is that most security applications are designed to interfere with access to data. By nature they are designed to keep people out. On some days I reach for my Treo dozens of times, and I cannot be bothered with entering lengthy passwords repeatedly. So I tested a few alternatives and decided on what I believe is an optimal approach.

In my view the best compromise between ready access and security is Warden with the following three settings enabled:

Short Password

This allows you access to data by pressing a single hard button repeatedly (or combination, if you prefer). Turning on the device is virtually as easy as pressing the power button. One incorrect keystroke on the password screen, however, causes the feature to disable.

I feel comfortable that someone who comes into possession of my device will not know my shortcut in, and will press one of the other 54 Treo keys, disabling the feature. In that case, they would be required to know my much longer alphanumerical password to gain access.

Warden is set to lock five minutes after the screen powers off instead of immediately. So if I'm reading forum posts on mytreo.net or playing ChessGenius and the screen blanks due to inactivity, I can flick it back on without entering any password at all. But if the device remains off for a few minutes longer, the short password is required (and the much longer one if a keystroke is incorrect).

Remote lock and data obliteration

Finally, I set Warden's remote lock and data obliteration. We at mytreo.net believe this is such an important component to security that we have worked with the developer to hard code the capabilities into this site. With Warden installed, one can simply visit the LockMyTreo page on mytreo.net to lock or erase your device any time you want.

I realize that my "real world" approach may not be for everyone. Perhaps you prefer much more restricted or completely unrestricted access to your device. I recommend reading about a few alternatives in our extensive comparison review.

Related Links

Download / purchase Warden

Complete Review of Warden 2.0

Security Tips for Traveling with Your Treo

SecureX Review: Robust Security and Alarm Handling

Treo Security: mSafe, Warden, & TealLock Comparison Review

Treo Security Alert

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