Yikes.
Did you know that photocopiers store images of every single document copied on the machine, on a huge hard drive? Did you know that this data is filled with medical records, sensitive information, Social Security numbers, bank information, and more? And did you know that these copiers are often resold to buyers, both foreign and domestic, with that hard drive and all that information intact?
I didn’t!
This video is shocking.
I’d really like to know why copiers have this technology in place, anyway. I know that my small copier here at home has a memory, and stories the last few documents (so I hope) in its memory, in case I want to reprint or re-fax a document. But, really, it’s not a convenience to store so much information. It’s easy enough just to rescan the documents if there’s an error. I think it’s grossly criminal to store EVERY SINGLE document in detail. Why is this? Is there some law that demands this? Why would copier manufacturers invest in such large hard drives to do such a thing…. and then not tell the consumer that the copier stores all this data?
June 17, 2010 at 10:55 pm
Never heard this one! I’m glad I have my own, so I don’t have to run to a local store and use theirs. And you can be sure that when mine dies, I’ll smash it to smithereens before it leaves my possession.
And I wonder, too. Why do they have such hard drives? Think somebody paid them to do it?
June 18, 2010 at 9:19 am
I consider myself to be technically aware. I had not heard about this, but it makes sense. I’ve wondered how they make multiple copies, and this would make that easier. It very scary.