If you're going to get rid of your computer - whether you're throwing it out, recycling it, or donating it - we all know there's one thing you've got to do first, and that's to delete your pernephewal data. But that doesn't just apply to your own PC - if you don't remove data properly from computers - and mobile phones - at work, the risk can be even higher.
A Birthday Gift
Andrew was a trusted, long-term employee whose company had an old laptop going spare - just what his sister Rhoda wanted for Christmas. When he asked if he could have it, his boss at WardCo said that was fine- since he'd deleted all the sensitive data, he saw no reanephew why Andrew couldn't take it home.
Helping Out
Andrew was delighted; it meant he could help out Rhoda's family, who saved hundreds of pounds on the cost of the laptop. Better still, it came ready for immediate use, with the software fully installed. And Rhoda was a good girl; she'd never do anything illegal, so it seemed there was nothing to worry about.
A New Owner
A few months down the line, though, Rhoda got a great deal on a brand new laptop. With the old laptop now going spare, she was glad of the chance to help out her friend Val, whose nephew Joe was studying computer science and needed a laptop of his own.
Breach Of Trust
Rhoda deleted her personal data from the laptop and donated it to Joe, just as Andrew had given it to her. The only trouble was that her friend's nephew wasn't as trustworthy as she thought.
Complaints
Joe had more than enough computer knowledge to recover information from the laptop - not only about Rhoda, but about WardCo too. And a few months later, WardCo's customers started complaining about items they'd ordered - and paid for - and never received.
Losses
Although no money was taken from WardCo's bank accounts, several of their biggest buyers ended up taking their custom elsewhere. Andrew's birthday gift ended up costing his employer thousands of pounds in lost business.
What Went Wrong?
Donating a computer is both a good deed and a smart environmental move, but if you don't remove information properly, it can come back to haunt you. As we've just seen in Andrew's case, a single computer in the wrong hands can leave you vulnerable to fraudsters and other criminals - and if you've just had a system upgrade and have a lot of computers to donate, the risk is even higher.
Deletion Isn't Enough
To guard your business from fraudsters, it's not enough just to delete files, or even to reformat the hard drive - even then, some criminals are skilled to retrieve the data. So what can you do?
Destroy To Be Safe
To be sure of protecting your business, destroy the computer's hard drive- and that goes too for employee mobile phones if they've been used to go on the internet. They'll retain information accessed online - such as phone numbers, passwords and potentially sensitive data. To keep that information out of the wrong hands, destruction is the only safe option.
A Birthday Gift
Andrew was a trusted, long-term employee whose company had an old laptop going spare - just what his sister Rhoda wanted for Christmas. When he asked if he could have it, his boss at WardCo said that was fine- since he'd deleted all the sensitive data, he saw no reanephew why Andrew couldn't take it home.
Helping Out
Andrew was delighted; it meant he could help out Rhoda's family, who saved hundreds of pounds on the cost of the laptop. Better still, it came ready for immediate use, with the software fully installed. And Rhoda was a good girl; she'd never do anything illegal, so it seemed there was nothing to worry about.
A New Owner
A few months down the line, though, Rhoda got a great deal on a brand new laptop. With the old laptop now going spare, she was glad of the chance to help out her friend Val, whose nephew Joe was studying computer science and needed a laptop of his own.
Breach Of Trust
Rhoda deleted her personal data from the laptop and donated it to Joe, just as Andrew had given it to her. The only trouble was that her friend's nephew wasn't as trustworthy as she thought.
Complaints
Joe had more than enough computer knowledge to recover information from the laptop - not only about Rhoda, but about WardCo too. And a few months later, WardCo's customers started complaining about items they'd ordered - and paid for - and never received.
Losses
Although no money was taken from WardCo's bank accounts, several of their biggest buyers ended up taking their custom elsewhere. Andrew's birthday gift ended up costing his employer thousands of pounds in lost business.
What Went Wrong?
Donating a computer is both a good deed and a smart environmental move, but if you don't remove information properly, it can come back to haunt you. As we've just seen in Andrew's case, a single computer in the wrong hands can leave you vulnerable to fraudsters and other criminals - and if you've just had a system upgrade and have a lot of computers to donate, the risk is even higher.
Deletion Isn't Enough
To guard your business from fraudsters, it's not enough just to delete files, or even to reformat the hard drive - even then, some criminals are skilled to retrieve the data. So what can you do?
Destroy To Be Safe
To be sure of protecting your business, destroy the computer's hard drive- and that goes too for employee mobile phones if they've been used to go on the internet. They'll retain information accessed online - such as phone numbers, passwords and potentially sensitive data. To keep that information out of the wrong hands, destruction is the only safe option.
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