Are YOU good with computer parts? Then I NEED YOUR HELP

Actually,you may be surprised how much you could get selling legacy hardware on eBay.You'd be better off checking the selling prices of the very same stuff you have,take it out and sell it.In fact,have one of your pals take it out.Someone computer savvy.

a reply to: theantediluvian
I also work in IT so call me cautious ...

news.bbc.co.uk...
nakedsecurity.sophos.com...

I never pass on ANY storage media (CD/DVD/SD/HDD) that "might" have had personal data on it at any time ever.

A small cost to replace but a huge cost if it falls into the wrong hands.

originally posted by: Cymru
a reply to: theantediluvian
I also work in IT so call me cautious ...

news.bbc.co.uk...
nakedsecurity.sophos.com...

I never pass on ANY storage media (CD/DVD/SD/HDD) that "might" have had personal data on it at any time ever.

A small cost to replace but a huge cost if it falls into the wrong hands.

So do you have any first hand or even second hand experience of how this could be problematic?

If you work in IT do you have any stories of how this can be a problem or is it just a case of better to be safe than sorry without any real life problems?

a reply to: nonspecific

The chances are minimal but still there.
Sadly there are some very unscrupulous people about.

a reply to: nonspecific

Better safe than sorry in my opinion.
I've been burgled twice and lost 4 laptops.
Thankfully they were all locked down at the BIOS level and the drives encrypted.
If you do insist on selling a drive on, take a look at this ...
www.hiren.info...
Scroll down to Hard Disk Tools and look for Active Kill Disk.

a reply to: XxNightAngelusxX

Here's a site that buys computer components by the pound. These are their prices. A lot of scrap yards will take computer parts, so you can always go to a local scrap yard to see. Though you'll make more money if the individual parts work (then you can sell them on ebay).

I don't want to get your hopes up though. The payouts are very low, especially if you don't know which parts you have. It might be easier to sell the whole thing on craigslist to a local buyer so you won't have to worry about that (or shipping).

originally posted by: nonspecific

originally posted by: Phatdamage
Personally......

Keep the hardrive (bottom right) as in the wrong hands information can be easily obtained even if you have wiped it.

Same for the memory (black strips) these can contain personal data,

So your left with a power supply and CD drives, I'm sorry but your not getting much for them. Do they work?

You could go down the route of the motherboard and processor but again, not worth a lot.

I work in IT and manage information security. Please keep your data!

Do you have any other items for sale?

Have you ever actually come across someone that has had sensitive data stolen from a formatted HD?

I only ask as have sold loads and have never had issues or heard of anyone that has. I understand if we are talking business PC's but always assumed that was the kind of thing you poarents feared with no real basis due to a lack of understanding?

Both really, we have to shred all hard drives and memory when it is EOL (End of life)

my mum bought a second hand laptop from a shop a few years ago, and she accidently deleted some pictures from it, she wanted them back so i ran a recovery tool, i found a huge amount of pictures of people, some scanned PDF sale documents and a folder full of bill information, non of these by my mum! and all found using a free programme online,

luckily my moral compass pointed the correct way, the laptop had been formatted, and the OS re-installed,

like i say i deal with information security for a high profile company, Data is worth alot more than any hardware. best advice, do not sell on any hard drive or memory!!

originally posted by: Cymru
a reply to: nonspecific

Better safe than sorry in my opinion.
I've been burgled twice and lost 4 laptops.
Thankfully they were all locked down at the BIOS level and the drives encrypted.
If you do insist on selling a drive on, take a look at this ...
www.hiren.info...
Scroll down to Hard Disk Tools and look for Active Kill Disk.

yes this is the best way, we use BeCrypt whole disc encryption, rather that just the windows partitions, at 256bit encryption,

like i said, Data is the most valuable asset, hardware can be replaced

originally posted by: Phatdamage
Personally......

Keep the hardrive (bottom right) as in the wrong hands information can be easily obtained even if you have wiped it.

Same for the memory (black strips) these can contain personal data,

I knew about info being on the hard drives....but didn't know about the memory sticks!!!!!
Really??

You guys are

saints!

Thank you so much.

a reply to: DontTreadOnMe

Yes,

it is our policy to destroy HDD, SSD's, RAM ,and any backup media, Linux and Windows OS

Data is big business in the wrong hands, if you know what you are doing you can read it, as long as the device hasn't been rebooted

Track the physical contents of every computer and piece of network infrastructure equipment in your organization so you won't make the mistake of overlooking a storage device. Remember that even volatile RAM can serve as a "storage device" for sensitive data under limited conditions. Ultimately, you should just adopt an attitude of practical paranoia about sensitive data storage and act accordingly.

Don't fall into the trap of meticulously securing your running systems, then getting compromised or having sensitive data recovered because you didn't put any thought into securing the systems slated for disposal. The need for good security practice doesn't go away when you turn off the computer.

On Linux, it is possible to access and analyze RAM contents. There are some interesting information such as logins, passwords or session cookies ...

Unfortunately, old PCs aren't worth very much. You may get $50 for that old Acer if you're lucky

originally posted by: enlightenedservant
a reply to: XxNightAngelusxX

Here's a site that buys computer components by the pound. These are their prices. A lot of scrap yards will take computer parts, so you can always go to a local scrap yard to see. Though you'll make more money if the individual parts work (then you can sell them on ebay).

I don't want to get your hopes up though. The payouts are very low, especially if you don't know which parts you have. It might be easier to sell the whole thing on craigslist to a local buyer so you won't have to worry about that (or shipping).

Do you happen to know of a UK equivalent for Broadsort. I usually just throw out old motherboards

If all else fails, write up a great story about something that pissed you off, take your revenge on the evil computer that caused your rage and make YouTube videos of blending the various parts. Possibly you can generate some advertising revenue from it….

Don't part it out it's best to sell the entire thing.

AMD processor.... budget bull#.

take it to a pawn shop, they'll tell you to go away.
take it to a computer repair shop, they MIGHT offer you $20 for it.

The best way to secure an old used hard drive is to destroy it via hammer or screw driver. Solves every problem in the future!

[SNIP]