Erase cell-phone data before you send phone away

NEW YORK (4/23/07)--Before you send your cell phone away to be repaired or donate an old model, make sure you erase everything from the memory. If you don't, it's possible your personal information could be sent to someone else (MSNBC.com April 10).

Cell phones aren't just a mobile version of traditional landlines any longer--they store massive amounts of important data about you, such as credit card numbers, PINs, user identifications, insurance numbers, pictures, calendars and documents. You might think to erase all the information before donating or selling a phone, but would you erase everything before sending it in for repairs?

Generally, when you send a phone to be repaired, you won't get your original phone back--you'll get someone else's refurbished device. And yes, someone will get yours.

Mobile phone companies use programs to delete information from old phones, but the only way to make sure it's 100% gone is to erase the information yourself.

To erase all your data completely, follow these steps:

1. Eject the SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card. This won't erase everything, however, so keep reading.

2. Don't bother hitting the "delete" button. Just as on a computer, deleting files will only relocate files. They will be harder to find, but they won't be removed.

3. Visit wirelessrecycling.com and enter your phone's manufacturer and model to find specific instructions for deleting all the data on your phone. You may have to enter specific codes or even push a reset button.

4. Look through your phone data once you've finished, to make sure all the information is gone.

5. If you send your phone in for repairs and get a refurbished version, make sure it has a blank hard drive before you start entering your own information. If there's other information on the phone, you'll want to delete that before you start entering your own information.

For more information, read "Choose the Right Cell Phone for You" in Home & Family Finance Resource Center.