Can we see when an unreturned company laptop connects again?
Yes, if it connects to a segment you monitor, or if it still runs the NetSenX agent. On every plan, the network map shows each device with the name it announces and when it was last seen, so a laptop that reappears after its user left is visible, and if it starts scanning, beaconing to an outside server or uploading unusually, alerts follow. A laptop used only at home or on another network, without the agent, is invisible to a network sensor. In parallel, close the other doors: disable the accounts, revoke the device's certificates and VPN profile, and use your device management tool, if you have one, to lock or wipe the laptop remotely. Recovering the device itself, and any steps against the person, are matters for HR and legal advice.
General information, not legal advice. National laws can add to the EU texts quoted here, for example deadlines, forms or reporting channels: check your own country's rules.
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