Virtually everything is done online these days — from consulting your doctor to all of your banking, communication with schools and businesses, and everything in between — which means our most personal and private information is out there somewhere.
While most of us do whatever we can to secure this data by way of various passwords, two-factor authentication, and biometric recognition, what happens to the information stored on our laptops, tablets, and phones when we upgrade our devices?
Did you do a complete data delete, making sure to remove any and all files from your old device? And then when it eventually came time to dispose of those old devices, did you sell them or send them off to e-waste recycling?
In an effort to understand Americans’ attitudes toward their forgotten files, particularly when it comes to more intimate photos, we recently surveyed 3,000 people, asking them whether they clean their devices of data prior to disposing of them. Here are the fascinating results:
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Data Wiping Diligence Varies by State
Twenty-six percent of respondents admitted they do not wipe their devices prior to submitting them for e-waste. We then combined this survey data with a study by McAfee which found that 14% of people have intimate content of themselves on their devices.
Further research has shown that (just) 17.5% of people recycle their e-waste, which means that a whopping 1,640,419 devices — with sexual content of their previous owners on them — are recycled each year.
In a regional breakdown, Minnesotans were the least concerned about their data, with 46% of respondents admitting to not deleting files before recycling their old devices.
This means that each year, more than 48,000 devices containing Minnesotans’ intimate content are recycled into the wider market. They were followed by Alabamians and Alaskans at 43%.
The top 5 states where residents do not wipe their device data:
- Minnesota: 46%
- Alabama: 43%
- Arkansas: 43%
- Oregon: 39%
- Utah: 36%
At the other end of the spectrum, South Dakotans proved the most vigilant when it came to clearing old devices, with only 8% of those surveyed saying they had forgotten or not bothered to remove old files.
Following closely, only 10% of Delawareans and 13% of Mississippians and West Virginians said that they had recycled electronic devices without clearing their files first.
The 5 states where residents are most disciplined in wiping their devices:
- South Dakota: 8% (do not wipe their devices)
- Delaware: 10%
- Mississippi: 13%
- West Virginia: 13%
- Vermont: 14%
When asked what the main reason was for not clearing their data, 37% of respondents said they simply forgot to do it. However, 22% said they believed that the recycling centers would do it for them, while 21% said they weren’t aware that they should, and 20% said they just didn’t think it necessary.
That said, over half of the respondents (52%) said they had regretted not clearing a device before dumping it.
The Sensitive Info Device Owners Didn’t Delete
These were the most sensitive data the respondents didn’t remove from their devices before recycling them, according to our survey:
- Passwords and logins: 39%
- Social Security number or personal ID information: 22%
- Intimate photos/videos: 21%
- Financial account details: 18%
Most Americans (79%) surveyed seem more concerned with someone discovering access to all of their personal financial information than they would be with a stranger finding old intimate pictures of themselves.
Despite this, only 18% of respondents said they would be very likely to pay for a secure data-wiping service when recycling a device.
Instead, 59% of survey respondents wrongly believed that anyone who discovers personal information from someone else on a recycled device is legally required to wipe that data permanently.
More than half (54%) of people surveyed said that if they personally discovered a stranger’s old device with the data still on it, they would delete the data and recycle it properly.
How to Delete Your Data
But just how do you securely delete your data and properly recycle an old electronic device? It’s quite simple really, you just need to follow these simple steps:
- Backup your data: Of course, before submitting any mobile device or computer for recycling or wiping it clean, you’ll want to make sure you’ve backed up your important files and photos so they are not lost for good. In fact, regular cloud backups of your information should be done to ensure you always have a secure copy saved somewhere should your device fail or be stolen.
- Delete your data: This sounds simple but devices tend to keep various versions of files or saved passwords stored in their memory banks, so even if you think you’ve deleted something, it could still be accessible on your device in some form. You can download disk cleaning software or secure apps to ensure that all your information is gone for good, or do a hard reset or secure erase of your device to ensure none of your vital information is still attached to it.
- Remove memory cards: Be sure to remove any memory cards attached to a device and clean those, too, before recycling. Also, make sure that you’ve emptied all disk drives and haven’t submitted any hard drives or USB sticks with your device that may contain your files.
- Override existing storage: Surprisingly, even after data has been deleted, hackers still have ways of finding personal information through a device’s storage. To ensure your information is well and truly gone, you can override these storage spaces using built-in formatting tools on both Windows and Mac devices.
- Destruction or donating: Finally, it’s important to ensure the proper method of discarding your device. If your device is still in working order, you may choose to donate it to someone in need rather than recycling or destroying it altogether. If you do decide to send it to the landfill, be sure to submit it to an e-waste facility rather than just chucking it in with the general trash. Be sure to consult your local resources to find a facility that is reputable and certified.
“Our smart devices are so interconnected with the rest of our lives that it’s not a surprise that we have data on there that we wouldn’t want others to access,” said HostingAdvice expert Christian de Looper.
“But, it’s important to keep in mind that any data left on a device could potentially be accessed — even if it’s stored on a phone with biometric authentication. It’s actually quite easy to wipe a device before you’re done with it — though phone manufacturers could do a better job at educating the public on doing so, on their device, after transferring data to a new device.”
Methodology
For this survey, 3,000 Americans were selected from a geographically diverse, double opt-in online panel. We then refined this selection process to align with the specific criteria necessary for each distinct survey.
To ensure accuracy, we craft our questions to thoroughly screen and verify respondents, matching them precisely with the survey’s target audience.
We then combined survey data from McAfee’s “Love, Relationships, and Technology” report about the intimate content held on people’s devices with data from the U.S. PIRG Education Fund about the number of devices submitted for e-waste recycling annually.
Our data collection process integrates a range of quality control methods. Beyond standard practices like digital fingerprinting, bot detection, geo-verification, and monitoring response speed, each response is carefully reviewed by a dedicated team member for quality and contextual accuracy.
We also pay close attention to open-ended responses, examining them for relevance and originality, as well as screening for any nonsensical or potentially plagiarized content.