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What should I do about lost MacBooks during employee offboarding?

March 21, 2026 4 answers
Asked by CuriousCat123
I've encountered a couple of unexpected issues during employee offboarding lately. Two employees from a team that recently faced layoffs lost their MacBooks in the return process—both incidents happened within the same week. My boss isn't overly upset but is definitely annoyed. I'm starting to panic a bit, thinking that if it's happened once, it could happen again. I currently handle offboarding and returns in-house, but my boss is giving me a monthly budget to address this situation. What steps can I take to prevent this from happening again and ensure secure returns?
data protection device management employee management IT security MacBooks offboarding System Operations

Answers

BreezyTechie89
Don't stress too much! Losing devices happens more often than you think. It’s important to have your devices enrolled in mobile device management (MDM) software so you can lock or wipe them remotely if needed. You might want to make it a policy that the cost of unreturned devices comes out of the employee's final paycheck—which can motivate them to return the laptops like they should.
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TechSage47
First things first, make sure you have a remote lock and wipe capability in place for all devices. It’s essential to ensure that even if a device goes missing, it can’t be accessed again. Additionally, consider using a carrier that offers insured shipping for returns, like UPS, with tracking. If devices get lost, you can go through the insurance process. Just be clear with the laid-off employees about the return policy and the consequences of failing to return hardware.
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ITGuru50
Have you set up a process that includes sending return packages with tracking and insurance? Make sure you provide clear instructions on how to send back the devices, possibly including a courier service that requires a signature on delivery. This way, if anything goes missing, you have a paper trail to follow for insurance claims.
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LogicalAdmin56
Look, once the devices leave your hands, there’s only so much you can do. Make sure things like full disk encryption and remote management are enabled. In case of loss, that's mainly an HR issue going forward. Just document everything and let HR handle the follow-up with the laid-off employees. It's better to focus on secure processes for future offboarding instead of stressing about the past.
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