If you carry a laptop that has potentially sensitive information, or if you save your UCSC passwords in your web browser and/or e-mail program, we strongly recommend that you use a full-disk encryption program to protect your laptop in the event that it gets stolen.
Full-disk encryption prevents a theif from accessing any of the data on your computer. While you will still have lost your laptop, at least you do not have to worry about sensitive information being released to criminals.