Identity theft has become a major concern, not only for regular people but for entire companies. Every customer you have and every employee who has ever passed through your doors has a life that needs a special sort of protection — information. The problem is, far too often employers and companies in general neglect to protect information on older computer and other electronic hardware. This is where E waste disposal comes in.
How is Information Lost in Old Electronics?
Electronics contain all sorts of information about everyone you know or have had interactions with. In the modern world, electronics transmit data everywhere and are the receptacles of people’s lives in many practical ways. Everything from bank account and credit card information to Social Security numbers and personal addresses can be found in electronics. What many people forget is that in an electronic device, information stays until it is erased and recorded over. Because of this, one must be extremely careful when disposing of electronic devices to avoid losing their information. E waste disposal is a basic method of handling this problem.
Whenever an electronic device is thrown out anywhere, the information contained in it becomes public property. In many municipalities, putting out trash means it is effectively no longer your private property. So without E waste disposal, many companies and private individuals are putting out as much information as if they left their credit card, bank statement and driver’s license right out on the street for anyone to pick up at their leisure. E waste disposal has as its main purpose the elimination of this problem, although many people are still not even aware that electronics in the trash can pose such a risk to their information security.
Aren’t Broken Electronics Safe from Snooping?
The problem with folks who do not know why E waste disposal is so important is that many do not realize how much information can be gleaned from broken technology. Computers, phones, and sometimes even web routers may contain data that can be used against the person to devastating effect. Your identity, or that of an employee or customer, can be stolen and used for many kinds of nefarious activities.
The data on hard disks is stored physically, which means it may be accessible even if the device does not work. This is similar to how there are devices that can use a computer hard drive as a separate disk drive. A thief with some savvy and patience may be able to access a treasure trove of illicit gains this way.
Who is at Risk Without E Waste Disposal?
A better question to ask would be, who is not at risk? Any person who has used your systems in a manner that should be secured could be risking their information. Worse, an employee accessing your servers for completely innocent reasons will use their password — which could give a thief total, difficult-to-trace access to your entire company databases. Without E waste disposal, you may have to change every username and password in your entire system to ensure data safety.
What is E Waste Disposal?
E waste disposal is a method by which electronic components can be scrapped, cleaned of all their data and then put into new electronic devices later on. Through this method, your information can be kept safe without taking drastic measures. In some cases, this may be tax deductible as an expense item. Further, it is an environmentally friendly action that your customers may like.
E waste disposal is a great way to get rid of old electronics. It also keeps your data from thieves.