Fear of data loss prevents e-waste recycling
Wednesday, October 18, 2017 - 10:10:14
A new study suggests that people are hanging on to their old smartphones, tablets and other devices because they are worried about their privacy, according to Tech Radar.
The survey, conducted in Australia by TechCollect, found that half of people believe that their personal information might be exposed to malicious third parties, or that important data will be lost forever, if they recycle their gadgets.
This is a major indication that more needs to be done to communicate the benefits of mobile phone recycling to the public around the world and promote the concept of taking used hardware to reputable facilities for recycling.
The good news is that over two thirds of the respondents to this particular report said that they understood the environmental impact that can be had if these devices are simply thrown in the bin with general waste and sent to landfill sites. So the ecological message is getting through, although it is not enough on its own to change habits.
All of the best mobile phone recycling companies in the UK will fully erase any personal data from the devices that they are sent by customers, but most also recommend that users carry out a factory reset on their handset before it is shipped off to avoid any unnecessary exposure.
Modern smartphones give users the ability to back up all of their valuable data, either to a computer or to the cloud, so that it can be saved and restored in future. Deleting locally stored information is also straightforward, so nothing need be put at risk or lost for good.
Fear of data loss or theft should not put anyone off using a mobile phone recycling service or disposing of any other e-waste, so long as legitimate firms are used.
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