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Prey
Developer(s)Fork Ltd.
Initial releaseMarch 24, 2009 (2009-03-24)
Stable release
0.6.3 / May 8, 2013 (2013-05-08)[1]
Written inBash, Java, Objective-C, Python, Node.js, Ruby
Operating systemWindows, Linux, OS X, Android, iOS
TypeLaptop tracking software
LicenseGNU General Public License; proprietary (Prey Pro)
Websitepreyproject.com

Prey is a freemium Web service for tracking and monitoring laptops, smartphones and other electronic devices. A software agent is installed on the device to be tracked. It connects a host computer. The host can signal the agent, prompting it to reply with information about its current location, and can trigger various other actions.[2][3]

A control panel can be set up to manage multiple devices.[4] If connected to a Wi-Fi network, Prey provides location information by triangulation.

The Prey service is owned and operated by Fork Ltd., a small software company doing business out of Hong Kong and Chile. Prey is written primarily in Bash and runs on most versions of Windows, Ubuntu, Mac OS, Linux, Android, and iOS.[5][6] Much of its source code is published on GitHub and can be copied under the GNU General Public License. The server code and default Control Panel code are proprietary.

Company

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Fork Ltd. is a small private company chartered under the laws of Hong Kong.[7] It develops and markets simple-to-use web applications. Fork was founded in 2008 by CEO Tomás Pollak and CTO Carlos Yaconi. The company operates out of Hong Kong and Chile.[8]

The company offers three services: Prey; Tugar, a free aggregator for searching real-estate listings in Chile; and Bootic, an e-commerce platform on which order and payment data are stored and managed by Fork’s servers rather than the client's.[9][10][11]

Versions

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The application was released for Linux and Mac OS X in March 2009 and for Microsoft Windows in April 2009.[12]  Version 0.3 was available in September 2009.[13]  Version 0.5.4 was released in December 2011;[1][14] on April 4, 2012, it was replaced by 0.5.3.[1]

Prey provides Wi-Fi autoconnect, data securing, screenshot grabbing, webcam image capturing, hardware scanning, screen locking, remote messaging, and sonic-alarm triggering.[15]  Each function is managed as a module that can be activated on demand.

The current version is 0.6.3.[6][16]

Source code

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Most of the software is open-source and can be freely copied under the GNU General Public License (GPLv3).  The server code and default Control Panel code are proprietary.[3][9][17]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Prey Release Archive". Fork Ltd. Retrieved August 15, 2013.
  2. ^ Purdy, Kevin (Sep 21, 2010). "How to track and (potentially) recover your stolen laptop or Android with Prey". Lifehacker.
  3. ^ a b "Terms of Service for Prey's Control Panel". Fork Ltd. 2012. The Control Panel … application is currently not licensed, and [is] maintained only by Fork.
  4. ^ "Prey Standalone Control Panel". Fork Ltd. 2013. Simple app to trigger reports for Prey Standalone users.
  5. ^ Pot, Justin (July 15, 2010). "Track down and recover your stolen laptop with Prey". MakeUseOf.
  6. ^ a b "Download - Prey". Fork Ltd. Retrieved Jan 27, 2014.
  7. ^ Collao, Loreto (Aug 25, 2011). "Fork eyeing 500% client base increase this year". Business News Americas.
  8. ^ "About our company". Fork Ltd. Retrieved July 21, 2012.
  9. ^ a b Tomás Pollak, Founder & CEO, Fork Ltd. (Feb 19, 2010). "Comment to More than 3 devices?". Prey. Google Groups.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ "Fork: Making Life Easier". Fork Ltd. Retrieved July 21, 2012.
  11. ^ "Bootic". Fork Ltd. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
  12. ^ Pollak, Tomás (Apr 14, 2009). "Prey: Y rastrea tu computador robado (Prey: And tracks your stolen computer)". Bootlog.
  13. ^ Wallen, Jack (Sep 17, 2009). "How do I use Prey to help recover a stolen laptop?". TechRepublic.  Mkeighley (Sep 18, 2009). "Comment (Open-source app requires .NET framework??)".
  14. ^ Singh, Swapnil (Jan 29, 2012). "Make your laptop/mobile impossible to steal for free". TrickTackToe.
  15. ^ Mathews, Lee (Oct 28, 2010). "Prey tracks stolen Windows, Mac or Linux laptops, or Android smartphones, for free". Switched.
  16. ^ "Prey Release Archive [as modified Oct. 3, 2013]". Fork Ltd. Retrieved Jan 27, 2014. 0.6.0/  06-Dec-2013 21:39
  17. ^ E-mail from Tomás Pollak, CEO, Fork Ltd., to Steven Mogwai (July 25, 2011), available at Prey Project Issues.
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