Security Security Security

Jon Foster · 07-19-2010, 08:13 PM

I can never tell people too many times that security should be the number one concern when using computers. Especially if you use anything with a Microsoft product on it!

Case in point. This morning on the way to the office I drove past a partial PC on the side of the road. I stopped, backed up, grabbed it out of the trash, put it in the car and continued to work. After getting everything squared away for the morning we cleaned out the bugs and leaves that were inside the PC. About 5 minutes later we had the PC up and running.

The computer contained all sorts of personal information. Everything from tax returns to pictures of kids, weddings, personal documents, some extremely crazy whacked out religious stuff and an amazing amount of porn.

If I can find the house that I found the machine at I'll stop by to tell the previous owners how dangerous it was to dump the machine into the trash.

Never ever, for any reason dump a computer in the trash! At the very least take the hard drive(s) out and dispose of them properly. Or be sure the data has been removed and destroyed so nobody can retrieve it. If you have to, take the computer to somebody who will do the cleaning for you. Even if they charge you a fee. It's well worth it.

Jon.

JDtech · 07-19-2010, 08:43 PM

Amazing story. Thanks for sharing.

STBear · 07-20-2010, 03:57 PM

There are a lot of people that think if they transfer the data to their new PC it's gone from the old. Others never give a thought to their old data.

Bodryn · 07-25-2010, 07:35 PM

I have read somewhere that at the very least, you could take the old hard drive out and smash it to smithereens.

Might be good therapy for some folks.

I see there also are advertisements for software that you can run on your HDD that will wipe it clean. Can't vouch for any of these, though....

jcjacob · 07-25-2010, 10:26 PM

Many people, unfortunately, think that when they copy data from their old PC or hard drive, they can just throw the original away, but as you said, the data is still there.

Even if a drive is formatted, the data that was there previously can usually be recovered. The best thing to do is wipe the drive using a program that utilizes either the Department of Defense (DOD) 5220-22M or a Gutmann algorithm. There are many free programs available such as Darik's Boot And Nuke | Hard Drive Disk Wipe and Data Clearing or Disk Wipe - Free software

Additionally, most drive manufacturers, like Seagate and Western Digital offer free utilities downloadable from their web sites that will completely wipe all data from drives.

07-19-2010, 08:13 PM	#1
Jon Foster Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: White Lake, MI Posts: 149	Security Security Security I can never tell people too many times that security should be the number one concern when using computers. Especially if you use anything with a Microsoft product on it! Case in point. This morning on the way to the office I drove past a partial PC on the side of the road. I stopped, backed up, grabbed it out of the trash, put it in the car and continued to work. After getting everything squared away for the morning we cleaned out the bugs and leaves that were inside the PC. About 5 minutes later we had the PC up and running. The computer contained all sorts of personal information. Everything from tax returns to pictures of kids, weddings, personal documents, some extremely crazy whacked out religious stuff and an amazing amount of porn. If I can find the house that I found the machine at I'll stop by to tell the previous owners how dangerous it was to dump the machine into the trash. Never ever, for any reason dump a computer in the trash! At the very least take the hard drive(s) out and dispose of them properly. Or be sure the data has been removed and destroyed so nobody can retrieve it. If you have to, take the computer to somebody who will do the cleaning for you. Even if they charge you a fee. It's well worth it. Jon. __________________ Members don't see ads in threads. Register your free account today and become a member on Tech Today Online, gaining access to posting privileges, contests, free plug-ins and other downloads, unlimited online storage for your photographs, reviews, free marketplace listings, and much more. __________________ Come visit us on the web at AITec Services

07-19-2010, 08:43 PM	#2
JDtech Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 308 Blog Entries: 1	Amazing story. Thanks for sharing. __________________ Follow me on Twitter \| My Tech Blog

07-25-2010, 07:35 PM	#4
Bodryn Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Minnesota; Manitoba Posts: 90	Security for old Hard drives I have read somewhere that at the very least, you could take the old hard drive out and smash it to smithereens. Might be good therapy for some folks. I see there also are advertisements for software that you can run on your HDD that will wipe it clean. Can't vouch for any of these, though.... __________________ Bodryn ======== "Where are we going? And why are we in this handbasket?"

07-25-2010, 10:26 PM	#5
jcjacob Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Doylestown, PA Posts: 159	Many people, unfortunately, think that when they copy data from their old PC or hard drive, they can just throw the original away, but as you said, the data is still there. Even if a drive is formatted, the data that was there previously can usually be recovered. The best thing to do is wipe the drive using a program that utilizes either the Department of Defense (DOD) 5220-22M or a Gutmann algorithm. There are many free programs available such as Darik's Boot And Nuke \| Hard Drive Disk Wipe and Data Clearing or Disk Wipe - Free software Additionally, most drive manufacturers, like Seagate and Western Digital offer free utilities downloadable from their web sites that will completely wipe all data from drives. __________________ -John

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07-20-2010, 03:57 PM	#3
STBear Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Posts: 26	There are a lot of people that think if they transfer the data to their new PC it's gone from the old. Others never give a thought to their old data.