Wipe your devices before selling them
Congratulations. You just bought a shiny new device, but you’re unsure what to do with still functioning older device. You could either donate it, recycle it, gift it, or even sell it on Geebo. However, before you do any of those things, you want to make sure there is no longer any valuable information left on the device.
Recently, ABC Action News in the Tampa area bought a number of laptops from people who were selling them on online marketplaces. A number of those laptops still had valuable information on them including bank account and social security numbers. Before parting with a device that has been in your service for years you want to make sure that there is no personal information left on it. While Action News mentions taking your device to be professionally wiped, that costs money and could eat into any potential windfall if you’re planning on selling the device. That’s not even taking into account that while most professionals are on the up and up, there are those bad apples who may use this as an opportunity to harvest your data. After backing up the data you want to save, try these tips for wiping the hard drive on your PC or laptop.
As the video mentions, software like DBAN is probably your best bet for wiping your hard drives of all important information. Apple computers have their own built-in process for wiping the hard drive. The same goes for Android and iOS devices in case you’re selling a phone or tablet.
In these days of personal information being leaked from just about everywhere taking these few extra steps and a little bit of time are definitely worth the effort and your peace of mind.
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