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Today we had a customer bring in a used computer that they purchased. They asked us to remove the password from the system so they could use it instead of re-installing the operating system. This is not an uncommon request that we receive. When we do this we always look at the files on the computer to make sure there is no sensitive information left on the computer. Well today we found extremely sensitive information.
This computer was from a local employer that had a version of QuickBooks accounting software on it. Now normally I would not look into the files I would just delete them. This one I decided to look into farther because my wife and mother used to work for them. Sure enough both of their social security numbers, date of birth, addresses and phone numbers were in the file 100% un-protected along with about 20 others.
All I could do was ask myself; “What if this would have been some unscrupulous person that found this?” The more I thought about the issue the angrier I became. Before I even looked into the files I called the previous owner of the computer and told them that I was in possession of the computer and that they should be more careful when they dispose of a computer. To my shock they didn’t really seem to care. Then when I saw the information that was on there I just couldn’t believe it.
So now for the lecture… Even if you format a computer and re-install the operating system the information that was on the computer is STILL RECOVERABLE. Be sure you protect your identity and most definitely the identity of others if you store personal information and take the computer to a professional and have the hard drive “scrubbed” so no information is recoverable. Make sure you take it to someone that you trust that will do the job correctly. JUST A COMMON FORMAT WILL NOT REMOVE THE INFORMATION SO IT IS NOT RECOVERABLE.
Let me give you a quick example. A couple years ago we had a customer bring in a computer. They were having problems with it and the computer manufacturer’s tech support had them insert the recovery cd. The inserted the recovery cd and next thing they know they are re-installing the operating system and everything is gone including the family tree they have been working on for years. They brought the computer to us and within a couple hours we restored their family tree as though they had never lost it.
Unscrupulous people, acting either on their own or in concert with a larger network, have numerous ways of using employees’ personal data for financial gain. According to a U.S. Department of Justice Web site, information such as a social security number, date of birth, driver's license number and home address can be used to successfully make false applications for personal loans and credit cards, withdrawals from bank accounts, use of telephone calling cards or for the purpose of obtaining goods or privileges that do not otherwise belong to the identity thief. Interestingly, the stolen information is not always used immediately. It is sometimes stored for some period of time, perhaps a year or more, before it is used. This practice makes it even more difficult to identify and link the theft of the data with its improper use.
A handful of states have taken legislative action to ensure that employers handle personal information of their employees responsibly. The State of Michigan, for example, adopted a law requiring that every employer maintain a written policy for safeguarding employees' social security numbers. The law requires that the policy be published in an employee manual or handbook or posted elsewhere in a company’s records. Mich. Comp. Laws Ann. § 445.84 (West 2005). The enactment of the Michigan statute was clearly a legislative response to a decision by the Michigan Court of Appeals affirming a $275,000 verdict against a labor union, one of whose employees enabled identity thieves to steal the personal information of about a dozen union members. Bell v. Michigan Counsel, 25 A.F.S.C.M.E., 2005 WL 356306.
Webman Design will take any old computers that you wish to dispose of free of charge and we will be sure the information on the hard drive will not be recoverable before we dispose of the computer. If you wish to sell your used computer we will re-install the operating system at our normal charge but completely format the hard drive so none of your personal information is recoverable free of charge.
Please be wise and protect your information and the information of others.
Brandon Miller,
Webman Design
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