A hard drive shredder is a kind of machine that specializes in shredding hard disk into pieces. The goal of the shredder is not only about disposing the drive but also about hard disk data security. You data or electronic record is unsafe from getting exposed to the public because it can contain personal information that could lead to identity theft.Identity theft is a very dangerous crime. The impact of identity theft victims are as follows:
Financial
Someone may open a credit card account or apply for a loan under your name. When somebody uses your credit card account and did not pay, these accounts are added in your negative credit score.
A bank account can be opened under your name and write bad checks. If fraudulent checks are created, you may be charged with creating fraudulent checks and be charged depending on the degree of seriousness.
Create counterfeit checks or credit card accounts using your name then drain all the money in your bank account.
If the thief writes checks in very large amounts, the bank may either reject the recipient of the check because you don't have funds left or you may get a negative balance on your bank account.
Auto loan insurance policy stolen using your name. This increases your debt and collectors will ask for payment and if you did not comply it will generate a negative credit score in your credit report.
Criminal
Identity thieves are not always after your money. Other criminals will use your name to commit crimes under the identity theft victim's name thus passing the blame on the victim. Thus, leaving the real suspect unharmed without any negative record.
Emotional
Only a few people are emotionally prepared for the emotional stress that identity theft can cause. If the theft is caused by the victim's carelessness, he may feel guilty about himself. Other emotional stress can be drastic some even have psychological effects to the victim.
See the effect of identity theft, it could have prevented if identity theft prevention methods are done.
According to a recent study, 64% of identity theft cases are from stolen computers, laptops, thrown and sold hard disk drives and other portable media; 16% are from wallets, and the remaining 20% came from identity thieves that stalk and gather personal files or information from their victims.
Today, we will discuss how computers greatly affect the way identity theft and how to prevent it.
It all starts with the file we create and delete in the computer. How well do you know about deleted files? Do you know such a thing as recovering a deleted file? If you do not know about it, then there is a big possibility that your identity will be breached particularly when you sell or throw hard disk drives away.
How will I know if my identity used by the other person? You won't know about identity theft until it is too late unless you are cautious about your personal accounts, check credit reports regularly and inspect your bank account statements every month.
Here, are some signs that your identity is compromised:
1. Unknown number of accounts you have
2. fraudulent and inaccurate information about your credit report
3. failure to receive mails on expected dates
4. receiving credit cards that you did not apply for
5. being denied of credit or getting calls/letters from debt collectors
Don't wait for the signs, secure your identity and remove those remnant data by sending it to hard drive shredders.,
How hard disk shredder works?
Hard disk shredders are machines that do the task of disintegrating hard disk into unrecoverable pieces. People use it to recycle e-waste but now a modern tool to make sure data are gone for good.
The shredder does exactly what industrial metal shredders do. Some companies have smaller machines while others use bigger machines to proceed in the shredding process. The disk is transferred to the machine by a conveyor belt that drops the disk to the machine. The result? A completely disintegrated drive.
Hard disk shredders are one of the most effective method to make sensitive data unrecoverable securely.
Is shredding just an exaggeration of data security? No. Because unless you do not shop online, login your email accounts, or save private information in your computer, your hard disk contains highly sensitive information. Additionally, here are some highly sensitive data as suggested by DOD:
Social Security number (SSN)
Banking information and credit card number, Passport information
Foreign visa number
Information about your tax
Your financial and credit report
Anything that can be used to facilitate identity theft (e.g., mother's maiden name)
It is without a doubt that 80% of computer users save this information to either remember it or use it for future reference.
According to D.O.D, hard disk destruction is required and recommended not software data wiping. So it is not an exaggeration but a form of data security.
Comments
Post a Comment