Does Your Photocopier Have A Dirty Little Secret?

In March's blog article, "Keeping Safe Online and Avoiding Identity Theft," we discussed the concept of identity theft. The likelihood of its occurrence was based upon the ignorance or recklessness of the end user inadvertently releasing personal information out on the Internet. Last month, CBS News Chief Investigative Correspondent, Armen Keteyian exposed a feature built into most high-end copiers since 2002...a hard drive.

Why would a hard drive be of such great concern?

Apparently, the hard drives retain copies of all images processed by the machines. The result of such a practice is the potential release of highly classified, confidential information to a non-restrictive, uncontrolled situation. By situation, I refer to the aftermarket aspect of the copier business. Many copiers are leased by businesses to use them with the least amount of issues during their first three years in production. Typically, at the end of the lease period, the device is returned and a new one is put in its place.

Why Do I Care If My Lawyer, Accountant, or Doctor Leases A Copier?

In his video, Mr. Keteyian interviews a consultant from Sacramento, CA who demonstrates how easy it is to extract tens of thousands of images from the hard drives once you buy one from an "off lease" reseller. As it works out, the copier companies do not typically erase the drives once the copies are made. This translates into your unbeknown "archiving" of images.

The Federal Government has laws to protect your privacy. The question in your mind should be why isn't this covered?! During the interview, Ed McLaughlin, President of Sharp Imaging, revealed their own survey, commissioned in 2008, found that 60% of Americans were not aware of the fact that the images are stored on a hard drive. He noted that the industry, in general, has failed to inform the general public of the potential risks involved with copiers--"It's falling on deaf ears or people don't feel it's important" or they have the approach, "We'll take care of it later." Sharp Imaging, like many other manufacturers, offers a feature to automatically erase the image from a hard drive, but it costs $500 for that option. Why should that cost extra?!

The Findings

Apparently, this secret was not effectively brought forth to a number of businesses and government offices that leased the machines in the exposé. Insurance companies, police departments, doctors' offices and other businesses were "exposed" to be ignorant of this fact. Based upon the information discovered on these copiers, it appears that there would be a number of Federal or State Regulations that are being violated. If the end user of the machine is unaware of the risk due to a tiny mention within a boilerplate text manual page not observed at time of purchase, one must ask "Who is responsible for the security of the information stored in these machines?"

The warehouses that resell the machines sell the off-lease equipment at prices as low as $300, yet the manufacturer wants to sell the "self-clearing" feature for $500. So, where would the expense need to be borne? Should the Lessee or Vendor be the one expected to clean the machine? Should it remain as an option for whomever whether they want to extract and destroy the hard drive in the copier? Frankly, I believe there are too many options that are left unaddressed. At this time, identity theft from recovered copier hard drives is not recognized as a prevalent crime; however, given its new level of publicity, it may become a greater threat. Hopefully, the same level of publicity will convince the powers-that-be to enact legislation that will make it mandatory for one of the parties involved to protect the copier users from themselves--if not, then voluntarily.

The Prospect of Identity Theft

Many of the exposed documents found on the copiers included social security numbers, bank account numbers, birth certificates, and income tax forms. If you believe that your information may have become compromised by virtue of an inadvertent release in a copier's hard drive, you should take the necessary precautions to protect yourself. For a detailed punch list, visit www.ftc.org/idtheft. There, you may read articles, watch videos and link to other sites that will inform you and educate you to become a wiser consumer. Not all ID Theft happens online, you need to know more to protect yourself and your loved ones. If you would like to learn more about concerns of modern day life or computer use, feel free to follow us on this blog or visit our website for newletters and articles related to technology's risks and benefits.