I have an interest in tech stuff, but I am occasionally blindsided by a story that I should have seen coming. So to prevent my readers from having the same “YIKES” moment that I recently had while watching the news, may I relay this cautionary tale to you all.
YOUR DIGITAL COPIER HAS A HARD DRIVE IN IT !! And so does the digital copier at your doctor’s office, your attorney’s office, your police department, local government offices, the IRS and, probably, Nancy Pelosi’s office (I would like to get a look at that one).
Digital copiers are great technology that permit you to manipulate images, network your copier like a printer in your office and enhance the speed and efficiency of your office operation. Both color and black and white models are an asset to every office in the country. But it turns out that the technology uses a lot of computer hardware, which I knew, including a large hard drive (which I had not thought about) and that images processed by the copier are kept as files on the hard drive in the copier. Really…
So what happens to the hard drive images when you trade in your copier to upgrade to a new unit ? Beginning to see the problem, are we ?
In thousands of cases, probably tens of thousands or more, nothing is done to secure or destroy the files on the old copier and they are taken out of your office to make room for the new copier with years of sensitive, confidential documents still on the old drives – which can be recovered by even an unskilled hacker. Those of us who routinely remove the hard drives from old computers that are being retired may smile blissfully without a thought about the stored data that can walk out of the building when we replace a copier.
You have been warned.
You-Tube clip from CBS News tells the story:
My source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iC38D5am7go
Comments (8)Subscribe to CommentsComment