Copy machines can store your private info

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March 17th, 2010 - Posted by Robert Siciliano

Robert Siciliano is a NextAdvisor.com Expert Guest Blogger

Today, copy machines, fax machines and many printers are just like computers; they're smart and they have hard drives or flash drives and can store data that can be extracted. Peripherals in the olden days, just like dot-com-heavy stock portfolios, were dumb.

Because of the increased demand of networked technologies, manufacturers of all these peripherals met the demand and built them so they can be easily accessed by everyone in the office.  These same peripherals are often wireless too. They also have memories, or caches, which allow them to store printing jobs when the copier is busy. This kind of memory has a consequence.

The issue here is that these devices are not always treated with the same security considerations as a computer. After all, PCs are often locked down, access is limited and the data might be encrypted. When someone upgrades to a new PC, the old PC's data is supposed to be removed, reformatted, etc. This procedure is often overlooked on a copier/printer/fax.

Consider what kind of data is copied (and therefore stored) at your doctor's, bank's, mortgage broker's and accountant's offices. There might be personally identifiable information that someone could use to create new accounts or take over existing accounts.

Where do old peripherals go? Many of them head to warehouses to be resold. Others end up on eBay. A quick search on eBay results in 13,314 copiers for sale, 1,874 of them are used . If I can buy an ATM off Craigslist with over 1,000 credit and debit card numbers on it, how much data do you think we can get from used copiers?

All the more reason to protect your identity:

1. If you think you're a victim of identity theft, find out how to get a credit freeze. This is an absolutely necessary tool to secure your credit. In most cases, it prevents new accounts from being opened in your name. This makes your Social Security number useless to a potential identity thief.
2. Invest in anti-virus and keep it auto-updated.
3. With your iPhone get my book as an App or go to my website and get my FREE ebook on how to protect yourself from the bad guy.
4. Invest in identity theft protection and prevention. Not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk. (Disclosures)

Robert Siciliano is CEO of IDTheftSecurity.com, an identity theft expert, professional speaker, security analyst, published author and television news correspondent. Siciliano works with Fortune 1000 companies and startups as an advisor on product launches, branding, messaging, representation, SEO and media. Siciliano's thoughts and advice on all these matters appear often in both the televised and print news media including CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, FOX, Forbes and USA Today. He has 25 years of security training as a member of the American Society of Industrial Security. He is the author of two books, including The Safety Minute: Living on High Alert; How to take control of your personal security and prevent fraud. He's also partnered with Intelius to help raise awareness about the growing threat of identity theft and to provide tips on how you can protect yourself.

Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Speaker discussing copy machine scams on CBS Boston