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Old hard drives are helping ID thieves
(Leicester Mercury Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) People must take steps to stop their details being harvested from old computers and sold to fraudsters, an expert warned today.
The news follows the revelation by the BBC that identity thieves are buying UK bank account details stolen from old hard drives on the black market in West Africa.
Thousands of supposedly wiped hard drives from home computers are being read and personal information is being gathered for illegal use.
Professor of criminology Martin Gill, of the University of Leicester, said: "It's clear this is a problem and, despite the advice being given, people are not taking notice.
"Some computers are being sold with bank account information still on the hard drive, while others have CVs which can contain very useful information for an identity thief.
"With basic details about you, an identity thief can get a utility bill and then get a passport, loan or a mortgage in your name." Earlier this year, the Mercury reported Prof Gill had bought six second-hand computers in Leicestershire and found two had information that could be valuable to identity thieves.
He said: "If people think deleting something and then emptying the recycling bin is all they need to do, they're mistaken. They need to properly format the hard drive." However, the cheapest, easiest and most certain way to protect personal information is to destroy the hard drive physically to make sure no one can access it.
At Sileby recycling company Complete Wasters, the hammer is the preferred tool to ensure the security of its business clients. Home computers the company receives are taken to pieces and the hard drives smashed up. Other parts are either sent away to be melted down and recycled, or re-sold.
However, the organisation also has software to wipe hard drives where possible so that old computer parts can be used to rebuild machines.
Darren Potter, of Complete Wasters, said: "If the hard drive is too old to reuse we smash it with a hammer and it goes with other materials to be melted down. Our customers are businesses and it helps them to know information on their equipment is not recoverable. Sometimes physical violence is the best way - and it's therapeutic, too!" The BBC investigation found bank account details being sold for about GBP20 in the Nigerian capital, Lagos. The former owners had wiped the computer memories and sold the machines, not realising internet banking data could still be retrieved.
Copyright 2006 Northcliffe Newspapers Group Ltd
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