Some practical suggestions to protect your computer data from theft (remember that theft of a computer or hard drive is also a theft of the data in that machine):

• Keep data on servers that are in locked rooms
• Use removable hard drives (or CD drives) that can be locked away at night (and remember to lock them up)
• Encrypt and/or password protect files so that data will be unusable if stolen. Note that normal passwords, such as windows or windows network, will not secure your data
• Use products that require special tools to detach a storage device
• Place a lock on or put a "cage" around desktop machines. Use alarms on machines

Source: Machlis, Sharon. (1997, May 5). How to protect sensitive data from physical theft. ComputerWorld. p. 1.