Tech-tip - Securely Disposing of Your Mobile Device
Overview
Mobile devices, such as smartphones, smartwatches, and tablets, continue to advance and we continue to change these on a yearly basis or as soon as a new device is available. This just means we now have a lot of devices carrying information about us and others close to us.
Your Information
Mobile devices store far more sensitive data than you may realize, oftentimes more than even your computer. Typical information can include:
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Where you live, work, and places you frequently visit
, employee details, IRD numbers (making it easy for identity theft)
•The contact details for everyone in your address book and applications, including family, friends, and coworkers
•
Call history, including inbound, outbound, and missed calls
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SMS (texting), voice, and multimedia messages
•
Chat sessions within applications like secure chat, games, and social media
•
Location history based on GPS coordinates or cell tower history
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Web browsing history, search history, cookies, and cached pages
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Personal photos, videos, audio recordings, and emails
•
Stored passwords and access to personal accounts, such as your online bank or email
•
Access to photos, files, or information stored in the Cloud
•
Any health-related information, including your age, heart rate, blood pressure, or diet
When disposing of your mobile device, be sure to do a factory reset and remove the SIM and any SD cards if your device has them.
(so many resources are available to assist you do the above on the net and most vendor sites some with videos)
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