Top > Webmaster > 2006 > September > 2006-09-03

Personal Data on Used Mobiles

According to recent research results, consumers of smart phones may not erase private information of them, while selling on eBay. According to a small sampling taken by security software company Trust Digital, personal data such as banking records, corporate notes on sales activity and product plans were among the sensitive data found on PDAs (personal digital assistants) and smart phones sold on eBay. The problem is similar to one that plagues used computers that are sold or discarded before the hard drive is wiped clean.

Nick Magliato, chief executive of Trust Digital, said in a statement: "Personal and corporate data is being sold on the open market through eBay, and it`s also available to anyone who finds, steals or purchases a used smart phone or PDA from any other source. The general public needs to immediately be made aware of this fact."

In its sampling of 10 mobile devices purchased on eBay, Trust Digital retrieved nearly 27,000 pages of sensitive data. Among the users were the corporate counsel of a multibillion-dollar technology company that serves the legal market, a former employee of a publicly traded security software company, and an employee of a Web services company. The company advised mobile device users to enable the password function on their smart phone or PDAs and inquire about data security from their cellular provider.