Illustration: Knowledge, Deception

The regional manager at a retail chain forgets his first laptop on a store counter. When he returns, it's gone; so he reports it stolen. That night, he got a phone call from a person saying he was a police officer and they caught a man with his laptop. The officer said the manager's business card was taped to the laptop, and if he knew the laptop's password, the officer would know it was his. The manager gave him the password. The officer said thank you and hung up.

When the manager called the police back to ask when he could get his laptop, they replied, "What laptop and what officer?"