What I Found On A Stranger's Laptop From eBay

Hello! In this video, I’m going to tell you about a real and frightening story about how I bought two laptops on Ebay and recovered the owners' personal data from them. What do you think I found? How can you protect yourself if your laptop falls into the clutches of scammers (even if you think that you deleted all of the old files)?
Watch our new video to find out!
00:00 Intro
00:40 Principles of data recovery
01:06 Laptops
02:03 Unpacking
02:42 Preparing for data recovery
03:23 Disclaimer
03:33 First Attempt
04:45 Second attempt
05:31 Libraries and drivers
07:33 Music
08:47 Videos
09:26 Photos
11:54 Investigation: Web Surfing
13:04 The Person
14:55 Helen’s Hobbies
15:45 Helen’s Work
18:13 Helen’s Family
20:15 CU IRL Y/N
20:59 How to protect yourself
22:51 General Advises
Useful links
• Recuva (free): www.ccleaner.com/recuva
• Wise Data Recovery (free): www.wisecleaner.com/wise-data...
• EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard (2 GB of free recovery): www.easeus.com/datarecoverywi...
• Disk Drill Data Recovery Software (500 MB of free recovery): www.cleverfiles.com/data-reco...
• R-Studio for Windows (from $49.99): www.r-studio.com/
Sumsub - empowering compliance and anti-fraud teams to fight money laundering, terrorist financing, and online fraud.
sumsub.com
/ sumsub
/ sumsubcom
/ sumsubcom
/ admin
#DataRecovery
#Laptop
#CleanComputer
#Sumsub

[@suhas5214]

The most safest way to sell a used laptop is to run a software called DBAN, it writes random 0's and 1's until max, and deletes it 3 times. This is much more safer and effective than any of the other methods you mentioned. This whole process takes about 16hrs, making sure there isn't a peck of data on you.

[@x0men]

if it's an SSD then just mine CHIA on it and done.

[@heethjain21]

We can also do this via CMD/terminal of most major OS like Windows/Mac/Linux distris

[@jackharold8379]

Or the shred command on linux does the same thing but with every letter

[@Amanullah-dx5uy]

What about deleting partitions and recreate and formating hard disk?

[@b3ans4eva]

DBAN & DOD 5220.22-M (7 passes) is my preferred choice of destruction

[@douglasburnside]

To be absolutely secure, remove the hard drive and smash it with a large hammer. Gather up the pieces, and burn them. Take the ashes from the fire and put them in a bucket of acid. Finally, get a boat and in the middle of the night take the bucket of acid at least 10 miles offshore. After you make sure there are no other boats in the area (a good radar set will help) pour the acid into the water while traveling over a distance of at least one mile. At that point you can be at least 70% sure that very little of your data will be recoverable.

[@Sumsubcom]

I would argue that figure is more likely to be 63% based on the processes aforementioned. To reach 70%, one would have to add an extra step: burn the hammer that you used to smash the hard drive, as some data may have been transferred to the hammer via osmosis.

[@harshvardhansavekar3546]

I'd challenge you as destroying the hard drive by a nuclear bomb is 83% secure as we cant destroy the marks that have been on the land

[@ohno3730]

@@Sumsubcom how can you burn the hammer if its metal (except for the handle in some cases)

[@Embattled5211]

@@ohno3730 heat anything hot enough, it burns away.

[@somenamelastnaammee52]

To be absolutely secure, remove the hard drive and smash it with a large hammer. Gather up the pieces, and burn them. Take the ashes from the fire and put them in a bucket of acid. Finally, get a boat and in the middle of the night take the bucket of acid at least 10 miles offshore. stanley: AND SHOVE IT UP YOUR BUTT

[@TheDanaYiShow]

Imagine selling your used computer and seeing this video a few days later 😂😂 (recently found your channel and absolutely LOVE the content, keep it up!)

[@Sumsubcom]

Great to have you on board! And I know, I hope she doesn't find it accidentally 😂

[@abhi22]

Bruh that just happened to me

[@random6033]

You guys didn't know that you can recover files that were removed?

[@abhi22]

@@random6033 nahh bro. i am a noob when it comes to tech.

[@josephbrennan370]

@@random6033 this channel is educating me

[@Elias-ib1qt]

I bought a harddrive from a fleemarket, and I did the same thing you did. I was able to recover all emails from some company email account which dealt with factory security. That was quite interesting.

[@Sumsubcom]

I hope you didn't sell that info!:)

[@marjoa.8740]

@@Sumsubcom i would have sold that info back to that company😂

[@BUZZTEX2024]

@@Sumsubcom be all on dark Web 😆

[@handle535]

You are certainly brave. I was a computer forensic expert and I can say that there was some truly disturbing stuff on some of the computers I came across - and that is not even the obvious illegal stuff.

[@thecoldglassofwatershow]

Hmmm like what?

[@MisterK-YT]

Examples or it didn’t happen 😆

[@chardibinx]

You’re a tease Trevor.

[@dennykeaton9701]

@@MisterK-YT Unfortunately it probably did happen

[@ebutuoy0312]

Guess it relates to killing/violating/ decapitating people/animals/insects in horrific ways

[@ZombieTeube]

I don't think having her in person would be great, this is highly personal and even a bit humiliating But yes I think you should contact her to explain This video was great, as usual your content is highly qualitative

[@michaelcorcoran8768]

I don't know man. If someone called me and told me they had all that information on me I would have wished they didn't tell me that.

[@kerbatonbaton8108]

he can just send her a link with this video ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

[@renenetatm8222]

@@kerbatonbaton8108 please don't tell me you would open a link sent by a stranger.

[@kerbatonbaton8108]

@@renenetatm8222 I will tell you whatever i want to tell you and you will listen to it and accept it

[@Dudelikescake]

Use google virus total on incoming links

[@cathlinivana]

I cant emphasize enough how this channel is educational, entertaining and confusing all at once.

[@Sumsubcom]

Ahaha, thank you for your support!

[@theonejmv]

just like you :P

[@averagehelper]

Lately, I'm of the opinion that education is more important than a slight scare. That way there's one more educated person in the Jungle who can help educate their friends. I vote you find her and explain the situation and the potential dangers. There are good ways to broach the subject such that she's likely to be willing to learn how in the future to treat digital data safely.

[@x0men]

I vote find her too, especially now that you've uploaded this video first and announced your intention is purely educational. If all goes well, I expect to see you and *Helen* at a TED talk telling people about how much they should care about the things they use every day and don't just brush it off as "not a tech person".

[@BlenderDefender]

Yes, I'm voting for telling her about that too. It might seem a bit creepy, but I'm pretty sure you find a way to tell her about that in a way, that she 1. understands your intents are to help and educate and 2. doesn't find that whole story creepy. You've uploaded this video to a channel with 55k subscribers, so if she finds out about that herself one day, it might be even more creepy and I wouldn't like to talk about her behind her back.

[@Sumsubcom]

I think I'm going to have to listen to you guys... Let me speak with my team.

[@045sonalvishwakarma8]

And as a proof you have this video to showcase

[@OmDahake]

@@Sumsubcom you should definitely inform her and let her know and give her advice how to prevent it from happening in future

[@danishdarkstar3250]

That's it, I'm burning my electronics to ashes once I'm done with them.

[@Sumsubcom]

Oops

[@tanmaygupta6751]

Destroying just the ssd and hdd should be enough

[@viiltelijamurhaaja7225]

You only need to burn your storage. CPU will only have few megas of data, and it will be deleted after the power is of

[@notuxnobux]

you are going to need a lot of fire power to melt the metal 🤣

[@imranshahriar9572]

Your way of talking is very charismatic, Bradley! Don't forget us when you become very famous:l I am sure that's a matter of time! I wish you the best :)

[@atsheol508]

@@ignoreme1141 Yeah as your user states, I'm gonna ignore ya

[@Wulfieman]

@@ignoreme1141 What are you on about mate? Did you forget to take your medication?

[@killercon2735]

how can i learn his way of talking?anyone know how?

[@rashnu7627]

Yall take easy on@@ignoreme1141, he might have some experience with a creep with similar physical features or behavior, therefore they have a sensitive trigger for it now. No one knows.

[@rdzik2367]

I dont know why I confuse him with Jack Gordon though their content is totally different.

[@TusharAnandfg]

don't contact Helen, if she contacts the police (because of her passport if not anything else), you would probably get unnecessarily heckled by the police, especially if the officer in charge doesn't realize what you actually did and mistakes you for a scam artist.

[@noticedneko]

Well, he didn't do anything illegal. I wouldn't worry.

[@FelixFranz]

I don't agree with not contacting her. Especially non tech-savvy people are not even remotely aware of the issues demonstrated with this video, but actually need the advice given and awareness raised by it. Also this channel is a convincing display of the motive of contacting. For sure, she'll be seriously rattled by the huge amount of details she (or family member) inadvertently handed to a stranger for couple 100£. Apart from that, the author was careful to not publish any identifying information about her/him.

[@shinomiya89]

He didn't do anything illegal. The computer belongs now to him, and if the older owner left his personal data on it, it is his own fault. The police would probably use this video as an example to open people's eyes.

[@FelixFranz]

@DailoxAny reasoning about her desire is pure speculation. But we can reason about the choice in question. Not contacting her then leads to her being in blissful unawareness of being the main character in this story. At least for now, maybe even forever. But most probably someone she knows connects the dots and tells her. In the meantime, she or family and friends arguably did the same mistake with mixed outcomes. That said, what is Bradley working for, if not raising people's awareness to those "blindspots" people have, leaving them vulnerable? If she's being made aware now, however, she might be shocked and scared, but in a sense she got lucky to get some expert advice to not make this and similar mistakes again. It's even on KZbin, so she herself can even help others avoid a similar or even worse incident. On the other hand, she could react strongly, ignore any goodwill and try to shift all the blame of her current problems on this channel. In the end, nothing actually happened and it was her mistake in the beginning making it possible. This brings us back kind of to the first outcome. Is it worth the try?

[@crimsoncowboy7152]

and don't contact her because it's fucking creepy too

[@sykoteddy]

Once when I lived in an apartment complex I found a laptop in the trash in the basement. Since I like to reuse old electronics, I took it and was exited to see if there were any private files on it. Not only did it have a lot of private photos, but also a DVD in the player full of private photos. What made me surprised is that it was owned by a woman that worked as a security guard. It's to me very tragic that a person working in security don't realize how easy it is to recover. It wasn't even deleted. But she was lucky I found it and not someone that would use her information in a malicious way.

[@MisterK-YT]

Based on your tattoos and calling yourself “psycho teddy,” it’s probably better she doesn’t know it was you who found it lol. Guess it just goes to show that you can’t judge a book by it’s cover; or its username/pfp.

[@funkyfranx]

Your lucky _I_ found your laptop and not some creep! _I_ only look through your private information for curiosity!

[@hecthorns]

Knowing the Internet, this video will probably reach Helen or her son eventually. I just hope they don't get too upset regardless of who gets in touch with them first Great video as always, Bradley

[@x0men]

6 degrees of separation, that's all it takes.

[@Sumsubcom]

I think we're niche enough for her to never find out... :)

[@Sumsubcom]

At least, I hope so....

[@AniBAretz]

@@Sumsubcom And, yet, niche is exactly what is needed to find you out. Otherwise, you'd be like a needle in a haystack.

[@unicodefox]

If you were wondering why wav files seemed to extract fine, but MP3 files turned into a bunch of random noise. Both types of files are very resistant to corruption, In the case of WAV files, as long as you've got the the very start of the file, it'll just start reading data and play it, and multiple files could have been mixed into one, resulting in the very long tracks. The same thing also applies to MP3 files, however MP3 files are more common to use a wide variety of quality levels than WAV, so the first bit of data it found might bave been low quality, and the next part of data was high quality, and since high quality means less time in the same amount of data, you get what sounds like really sped up audio.

[@DaXande135]

There also were some photos of vinyl records on the harddrive, so I assume that those long WAVs were some digitized LPs. @Sumsub Btw. you don't have to digitize CDs since they are already a digital format. Also "CD" is the short for "compact disc" - so saying "digitize CD discs" makes no sense.

[@sstoi]

or maybe they weren't corrupted in the first place, the guy was interested in making electronic music

[@charginginprogresss]

The reason wav were untouched and mp3 were corrupted is because wav files are raw uncompressed pcm format, while mp3 are compressed.

[@AwokenEntertainment]

Makes me never want to sell and old computer.. scary stuff - keep up the good inforrming content!

[@GoldInforcer]

Another brilliant video! I can't believe something this high quality is free. I definately think that you shouldn't try to contact Helen, though.

[@kukulroukul4698]

AND WHAT TYPE of quality should be on charge. AND more important : how many times and on how many levels should be charged

[@kukulroukul4698]

oh , by the way IM AN ADULT ! trust me ;)

[@Sumsubcom]

I agree... But I have to listen to my audience! Most people disagree...

[@cjay2]

@@Sumsubcom You don't 'have' to listen to anyone. Do what you feel like doing. Your audience could all be wrong. Wouldn't be the first time in history. My opinion is do NOT try to get in touch with her. Leave it lie. You made the video. It's enough.

[@philcooper9225]

Google: Oh you've paid more than you know, kid.

[@thecomedian4136]

Impeccable English and communication. Good flow of information. Clever and appropriate jokes. Very presentable speaker. Perfect audio and video quality. Very professional and fact-based assumptions. Your channel is just... perfect! Please, keep up the good content. Valentino.

[@Sumsubcom]

Thank you for the review Valentino! We're really pleased to hear this. ❤️

[@albacanizareshernandez278]

By contacting her and showing this video, she would see the important piece of information missed out and how she can take better decisions with her private information. This is what the channel is about, isn’t? Love your work!

[@samrandoms2159]

Hi! I'm 'Helen' and yes, I gave that to my nephew a few years ago who later sold it you and- Just kidding. I think another facet of data protection you guys should totally cover could be on impersonation scams. Love the video!

[@fetchstixRHD]

Well played turn at the end, very well played 🤯

[@Sumsubcom]

You scared me for a moment there...

[@sorackee2512]

had us in the first half...

[@aaronjamt]

There's also the good ole' keep-or-destroy-the-hard-drive method too. When I've sold or gotten rid of computers, I've kept the drives for this reason. It also has the secondary benefit of allowing you to relive your past by looking through your old files or even booting up the old OS on a current computer or VM (assuming it's not Windows XP because that will probably never ever boot on a computer other than the original... not like I've tried or anything :P)

[@nikolayio1764]

Just microwave it, legit the only way to destroy completely a HDD 😂

[@viiltelijamurhaaja7225]

i would format the drive with zeroes. and you shouldnt use used hdd or ssd anyway. you never know if it will fail

[@lukedavis436]

I've gotten an XP machine to boot on different hardware before, i took the drive from a Toshiba and dumped it inside an RM, it booted up but threw a fit and deactivated windows. But it still booted up with the 30 day trial.

[@aaronjamt]

@@lukedavis436 I was referring to booting a more modern machine using the XP drive (which obviously does not work), even my 2005 Dell OptiPlex desktop machine won't boot my old XP laptop's drive.

[@jonastjepkema]

Once again, such an amazing video! Great information to everyone about why privacy and personnal info is so important to protect and take seriously. I really love that you share this information in such a great and entertaining format! P.S. I think you should contact Helen. I will frigthen her, but it will also make her much more aware of the problem and she will probably not do it again and talk about it around to her close circle

[@7ksoexx867]

I have 0 idea how this channel hasn’t blown up yet, keep it up even if it may be discouraging you’re not getting the exposure that you deserve, you’ll make it, hopefully soon.

[@Sumsubcom]

Thanks bro!

[@DiamondBroPlayz]

(Not insulting Elliot, or calling your channel bad)

[@jeffwalker7185]

Earlier this year my Dell laptop needed to go in for a minor repair. It had two hard drives - a SSD for the OS and a spinning drive for data. Before I sent it off, I swapped out both drives. I had upgraded the SSD to one with a larger capacity, so the smaller SSD had the laptop's original OS. The replacement spinning drive was a bare drive. As the repair was fairly minor, I was expecting it back. I just took the drives out to save backing them up in case anything happened in transit or in case the repair shop needed to re-install windows on the SSD. As it happened, the repair shop could not get hold of a part needed - they kept pushing the return date back. Ultimately, this took too long and the laptop was written off. I was so glad that I did not leave my original drives in the laptops as I did not have time from booking the repair to the laptop being collected to do a secure wipe of both drives.

[@anta-zj3bw]

This started out slow but gained enormous momentum. EXCELLENT presentation! Thanks!

[@Sumsubcom]

Thank you!

[@starlet5350]

This is James Bond meets (more) sophisticated technology🙌.

[@lowwastehighmelanin]

No this is more Q's wheelhouse

[@Sumsubcom]

You should see my suits bro

[@Sumsubcom]

I have a 'matrix print' flannel with shoes made out of reclaimed motherboard leather. Goodyear welted with WIRES.

[@Sumsubcom]

Jk. I think I spend too much time in the comments section.

[@starlet5350]

@@Sumsubcom this is gold😂😂

[@respectfuldebates]

I once checked the recycle bin of a computer in an internet cafe. It contained a copy of a woman's CV, a textfile with her gmail, linkedin and facebook username and password and another folder with a nude pic of her. I still wonder, whether she got the job that she applied for.

[@Givemepeacealone]

Then everyone clapped

[@virtualspokespeople4066]

Depends if she sent the pic I guess.

[@lennarddevries1637]

definitely my new favorite channel, keep up the good work!

[@tanvirkhan6687]

Terrifying scenario but necessary knowledge. Thank you for sharing.

[@KiyoshiKatu]

This is definitely an important thing for people to be aware of. Good share, good to see this getting in front of people. Modern society can get real scary because of things like this. Data security is important!

[@samdropmusic]

Absolutely right, Eric.

[@_GhostMiner]

*The files revealed the second laptop is older than we thought.* *The original system was Windows XP and then updated to Windows 7*

[@blubaylon]

This is random, but nice profile picture! I really like what you did with the colour combination and the text! Although I think it's missing a logo, since the name is already written in your username. I'm a graphic designer, I could probably design a cool logo for your channel if you want. If you're interested make sure to let me know :)

[@Sumsubcom]

Lmao

[@_GhostMiner]

@@blubaylon quite late, but anyway... I used to have "logo" of Minecraft head, but I'm not really doing Minecraft content anymore, so i removed it to make it more neutral and available for new other things.

[@al-gv7mq]

man this channel is so good, actual real life examples and quality explanations :)

[@Sumsubcom]

Glad you like our videos!

[@michelangeloobrien]

Well, given the amount of info on Laptop #2, it's good that you got a hold of it rather than someone malicious.

[@TomTheEnglishPicker]

Also that is some crazy eBay packaging for a cheaper laptop. The person will have paid a fortune if sent via Royal Mail.

[@danieliusj9192]

Great video as always! I feel like I learn something every single time.

[@Sumsubcom]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@SwagusSE]

Your videos are good production quality and funny and informative. You deserve more subs

[@grulple5863]

Can you do a follow up vid of a walkthrough cleaning process? A lot of videos are not as high quality and information packed as this one.

[@opticalbeast4947]

That first laptop is like a prehistoric fossil. It still had a Floppy Disk slot. I remember this abandoned mobile home that had been abanoned for 7 years now, I was hired to dismantle it and was allowed to take whatever I wanted from the house. And I found a shite Alienware, heavy af laptop. And some of the stuff I found on it was disturbing. A ton of Anime porn, some beastiality, and some stuff that made me think the past owner was a bit of a stalker.

[@StalkedByLosers]

Helen was probably not ignorant about her data, she likely had her laptop stolen. The laptop then spent a new but brief life ripping illegal Hindustani music and popular movies. Then it made its way on Ebay.

[@lilgobletpcmr562]

Incredibly underrated channel, love your work homie

[@Sumsubcom]

Thanks for the support man!

[@theDubaiPropertyGuy]

Man your content is top notch

[@damneddude8299]

Amazing as always! Sending Love!

[@Sumsubcom]

And to you, my friend!

[@lowwastehighmelanin]

Please leave "Helen" alone. Hopefully she'll see this and learn to be more careful. Edit: I used to work at Apple. If you need help removing all of the crap off your Mac call Apple Care. Macs have things built in to avoid this and have government level encryption built in

[@patrik5123]

Government level encryption? That's marketing speak if I ever heard it. Literally no one uses anything less than "government level". Macs use AES128 & SHA-1 for Filevault. So not great. But it's been a few versions of OSX since I last checked so hopefully that has improved. In either case, using encryption will make a format much more efficient since the data isn't readable to begin with.

[@bufordmaddogtannen]

@@patrik5123 my laptop uses MILITARY GRADE encryption. PEW! PEW! PEW! 😂🤣

[@shinomiya89]

@@patrik5123 It is also well know that the people working at apple stores, don't know anything at all about the devices. Only the specs maybe.

[@Izzy-vz6iu]

​@@bufordmaddogtanneni know this brand 😂

[@PoeLemic]

Very useful video. Thank you for sharing helpful information that we can benefit from. This content is so good -- that I am subbing and will be a long-term subscriber. GREAT WORK.

[@Sumsubcom]

Thank you so much! Welcome aboard!

[@ambrosevh]

This was fascinating! Just subbed, super underrated channel

[@Sumsubcom]

Much appreciated!

[@Sky4Jus]

That one dislike was probably that computer's owner

[@smeggerknee2448]

The second one was his ex-wife who has found out about his browsing history. Because .....she discussed the holiday they took......with all her friends..... and eventually one of them recognised the photos even with the blurring. and then sent "helen' this link. and the rest is (internet) history.

[@droidmaze]

@@smeggerknee2448 Now the family of 5 people disliked.

[@Strikery]

@@droidmaze the family has grown to 16 😱

[@theencryptedpartition4633]

It's 48 now, damn I guess this is the whole family, like relatives, cousins

[@Beetless]

@@theencryptedpartition4633 yeah all 137

[@cheesygerit2299]

19:50 here is when it really hit me how insane much u can really find out bout people just with sum leftover data i always reuse my storage for other purposes and dont sell em so ion worry personally but that's scary asf to think bout what a determined person could do with such leftovers great video btw and thanks for keeping an eye on our less tech educated people🙃

[@Sumsubcom]

Thanks for the support man!

[@hucklejoko4838]

This video is very much helpful. Thank you so much Bradley!

[@Sumsubcom]

Thank you!

[@LikeMinds_]

I would tell Her, not to put it in a scary way but explaining your position, blog and stance.. where you were taking it - educationally. Ignorance is curable! Information sharing through education would be the best possible way you could pay forward for the great contribution she provided! Help her grow through this 🤘🏻

[@amansinghchauhan1142]

This is seriously dangerous 😰. Great education video

[@NicMG]

This is some next level CSI shizz bro!

[@officialshivertrip]

Your channel is criminally underrated.

[@missmurda90]

New sub here, loving your content! I definitely think you should inform "Helen". Knowledge is power & honesty is the best policy. 💜

[@kylie5741]

Contacting Helen could be a good idea so that she doesn't make the same mistakes again

[@michaelcorcoran8768]

She might think this guy is a stalker or something. I'm just saying, it will be hard to explain this in a way that makes it sound normal.

[@mnurrreza]

@@michaelcorcoran8768 I think, less explanation and just let this video talk.

[@FelixFranz]

@@michaelcorcoran8768 Whatever she thinks or makes out of it, it's her choice. Ultimately she responsible of her life. Contacting her, would at least put her in position to actually make that choice. Otherwise maybe in the future, someone else will make that choice for her. Because opportunity, you know.

[@iyeetsecurity922]

I'd have put all the photos in a zip file and emailed it to him from a burner account with the title _"I know...."_

[@youssefzaghlol7825]

I actually performed data recovery on an old pc of mine that I was installing linux on and accedentally wiped it completely thankfully all my pics where still there but it never dawned on me what if someone else got hold of my old drive and did the exact same thing. great video btw from the idea to the storytelling to the editing all on all one of the highest quality content I've watched

[@HimanshuLilhore]

This guy is awesome, and the content is 🔥🔥🔥

[@may_may675]

Awesome content once again! Could you please do one for phones as well?

[@Sumsubcom]

I'd like to! We might do a part two!

[@JLFamilySong]

A technology refresh at my company replaces all servers, desktops, networking gear, etc. The last tech refresh we had over 700 drives. We had an onsite shredding truck where I had to witness all 700 + drives go through the shredder. We do use the NSA's erase program for single one-off hard drives as needed. I must admit watching the hard drives go through the shredder was pretty cool even though it took half a day and made a lot of noise. We take security very seriously.

[@Sumsubcom]

Amazing

[@lukedavis436]

The place i used to work claimed we took security really seriously but uhh.. We never kept devices up to date... Users kept using their work machines as personal ones so many dodgy extensions where installed... Yet they wouldn't let me take older Computers for my collection, even if i removed the Hard Drives and even the RAM at a stretch (for some reason they strongly believed ram stored data the same way as an SSD). So many XP machines went to waste... Even a Thinkpad with all the parts i needed to fix my own!

[@youreright3664]

How refreshing to find an informative, amusing video content and especially a video does not start with, "What's up guys" or "What's going on guys". On top of that.... well dressed, well spoken, comprehensible presenter, that doesn't try and make his voice sound like a Darlek...

[@markharrisllb]

I think you should get in touch and point her to this video. I’m glad I’ve never sold a hard disc in my life, however I recently bought an old laptop for Ubuntu and replaced the hard disk with a SSD. Hmm tempting! Brilliant video.

[@eugenesoch]

Amazing video, thank you! What about the mobile phones? We sell them more often and the data ee keep there is much more personal…

[@kislaykumar1331]

That's why I tell my family to not to sell electronic items even if it stop working.I just keep them at safe place in my house.

[@Sumsubcom]

Or destroy them with fire

[@aurum3747]

Old electronics should be sold for re-use or repair to reduce e-waste Firstly no one is actually doing this kind of thing (at least 99.9% of the time) and even if you're that worried about it you can just sell it without the hard drive or perform and actual full wipe

[@andreyv116]

Disassemble to find the circuit board and destroy the flash storage and/or other storage hardware. The rest is generally safe to dispose of

[@eurko111]

@@aurum3747 You're missing a few extra 9s

[@justanormaluser1535]

That’s definitely not a good idea at all. An iPhone for example can very easily be securely wiped in minutes. The OS and hardware is so locked down that nothing is possible with this data. On a laptop, just remove the hard drive or as others mentioned wipe it securely. Not at all getting rid of something sucks. You loose out on hundreds of dollars for your old phone/computer, it’s bad for the environment and it does not benefit less fortunate people that would be happy to buy a decent used phone for a fair price. Just wipe your data securely and there is nothing to worry about. I mean Someone looking through data like this is already incredibly rare. This is like 1 out of 100k

[@MichaelVickery1]

Good video. I hope it helps many people. I just thought that I would point out that if you can view the image, then it is likely that the latitude, longitude, date, and time are recoverable with the image. Really the best approach for keeping your data out of the hands of others, follow the NSA's example of 7 overwrites, or to keep the hard drive and RAM when selling old equipment. To your question, yes, information can be captured from your RAM. It is a bit more involved and only reveals recent activity, but that activity just might be a login password or username.

[@vladislavkaras491]

Thanks for the video!

[@smeggerknee2448]

My family think it is odd that I don't send my old computers off to recycling,but keep them in the loft after they die. Your video vindicates my decision somewhat. I suggest you do a follow_up using the following iphone android tablet old nokia ....but.... ask for your IRL friends to volunteer an old device AFTER they view this video. Then ask them to review the new presentation with you so they can decide HOW you present your findings. As....even those blurred pictures and vague hints are enough to get those former users in 'difficulty' and I wouldn't want those former owners knowing that you were the instigator otherwise they might very easily come after you.

[@lukedavis436]

The worst thing i ever encountered was pretty tame... I purchased a Windows XP Novatech (Advent/Mitac/Medion) 8599 from a Carboot sale (flea market) for 5 Pounds, it works a treat and comes with lots of cool old programs I've archived. However the thing was loaded with at least 10 Gigabytes of Gay Pr0n, Needless to say the computer now has an almost exact copy of its original OS... Same programs and OEM stuff... No pics tho. It works perfectly!

[@iphantommenace]

just delete the whole data and forget helen, leave her in peace

[@Sumsubcom]

I'm with you.

[@diegue]

@@mjn5016 I think he should contact her, telling her the risks of what she did and how to avoid it next time. Maybe a formal email or something like that, cyber-security awareness is something we should promote... Because, imagine she sells another computer in a few years but now it isn't a white hat guy, she would get in trouble just because she didn't know this was a thing. With just an email she can prevent from stuff like this.

[@tomskih203]

That music you used in the meme of the computer being thrown in the dumpster was epic XD I need it for reason.

[@sjsubsjs1494]

By seeing your content what i can only say is UNDERRATED

[@yessr7535]

If you havent contact her still, i feel the best way to aproach her would be to link her to this video telling her that you did this with the intent of educating people to take care of their data and you blured everything to make sure her private info isnt on the web and that you are sorry that she was the example

[@DeadDrop6109]

Just pull the HDD and drill holes through it. They are cheap enough to just throw a new one in there if you're trying to sell the laptop. Yes it eats into your profit margin, but if you have stuff on there that could potentially result in identity theft, the new $50 HDD is a no-brainer. You actually could put that in your advertisement "brand new out of the box HDD installed".

[@fetchstixRHD]

Agreed. As much as I don't like wastage, with the liability that comes with leaked personal info, I would rather not face that risk. No amount of "you can't sue me" would work for that, and if anything could backfire. As a bonus, that gives the perfect opportunity for a SSD upgrade where one can be done, as well as the "new drive included" selling point!

[@fetchstixRHD]

@@creepysmilingcarl9742: Agreed too, but I'm assuming the situation given is that you are in possession of that persons' laptop and are reselling it?

[@d-e-v-esh]

Great content man. More videos like this please.

[@Sumsubcom]

You got it!

[@gocrazzy8819]

This was a very interesting video. Good work.

[@jorgemtds]

I think it is important for "Helen" to be made aware of her insecure IT habits. She needs to LEARN how to properly ERASE a disk or dispose of it.

[@itachi2011100]

You should certainly inform her so that she can take better care of cleaning up her tracks when she gets rid of her current devices.

[@quickcurechef5373]

Thanks for all that you do man.. 👌🙏 i believe you're god sent! why? due to covid local university's cyber sec classes canceled, but I'm learning lots of interesting, relevant and life saving tips and clues from this channel while waiting to hopefully attend school. Thank you so very much! :) Interestingly but sadly, i never knew i could possibly get back my data after deleting an old laptop's slow noisy HDD after deleting the data, flashing MBR and re-installing new os. Was sad for a long time that the handful of priceless family/relative pics on that old windows machine were lost forever 😱🥴 Luckily and intuitively i kept that Hdd before getting rid of that laptop.. however i'm not quite sure the data is any good by now, but it's definitely worth trying to recover, IF i can find the darn thing 🤪but hopefully if all goes well, i will owe you a lifetime praise and even all UK/EU/AUS referrals 🤞🙏😌 🙌🥇🏆

[@potato_kingg]

Quality and informing vid, toptier mate.

[@cmdr-reflipd]

This is very easy on a windows hard drive, but in Linux with an encrypted volume, well good luck. Most linux distros use drive encryption as default.

[@jacobhinchliffe6659]

whats distros encrypt by default, certainly not the most popular ones!

[@nothingiseverperfect]

DUDE UR CONTENT IS SO GOOD PLZ DONT STOP AHHHHHH UR LIKE PHILIOSPHY TUBE BUT FOR TECH ITS SO GOOOD

[@Sumsubcom]

Ou, this is the kind of comment I LIKE

[@LucaDarioButzberger]

Rule of thumb: Private devices and drives: Format them completely, then sell. Private person of interest: Don't sell any storage device that has contained critical information. Company: Never sell anything with a storage device included. Remove all storages and completely destroy them using nails or a shredderer. In general: Never sell any storage device that contained enough critical information to compromise you. There are people who lost thousands of dollars because they stored their crypto wallet or passphrases on sold devices. If you are a person of interest and someone really want your data, they will get it if you give them a storage medium. Even completely formatted drives can be restored with a lot of effort, if one considers it to be worth it.

[@con.doriano5008]

Another great content

[@AidenRKrone]

If I sold an old laptop to someone who was able to recover enough data to identify me, I _wouldn't_ want them to track me down and tell me about it. That would scare and embarrass me. My only wish (or hope, really) is that they would respect my privacy and permanently delete the files.

[@xasmaniusvolk8416]

0:15 the title should be "what happens when you don't overwrite your drive with zeros often enough" XD

[@himes1747]

Surprised to see photos from my own country. Good job mate, that’s an honor ! :>

[@Sumsubcom]

:D

[@blaque5900]

Quality Content as always.

[@Sumsubcom]

Cheers!

[@almostanengineer]

Professional Botanist, Nah, you need GeoWizard, he’ll pinpoint that location from a single photo.

[@ericgulseth74]

Was thinking the same thing. Looks like western North America too me. The western, arid mountains. Northern Sierras, Cascades, into the Canadian Rockies. I know it's not very limiting, but hey, it's a start.

[@eternialogic]

The biggest problem is dead HDD drives, where you cannot directly delete the files. Even if you drill multiple holes in the hard drive, the data is still mostly there. With dead SSDs you can just buy a HV tesla coil or smash the dies with a hammer or a special shredder.

[@yojirex6374]

What kind of stuff do you have on your pc 😂

[@lukedavis436]

Uhhh.... What kind of person is going to go as far as try to read data from a drilled platter? Lmao

[@onurbespinar]

One small tip, Burgaz in Bulgaria and Burgaz island in Turkey are different places. Owner of this laptop definately spent his holiday in Fethiye Muğla and İstanbul. Ancient ruins in one of the photos is Sunken City Ruins of Simena. Owner of this laptop mostlikely started journey from İstanbul ended up in Fethiye than Antalya which is a common tourist route.

[@johncullen965]

I found an sd card on the pavement right outside my work, the photos didnt contain geo data but i was able to contact the owner via some of the pics on the card. Felt creepy to trawl through it, but was determined to return it. Contacted the owned and returned soon afterwards. Felt great to do a good deed

[@NameZei]

When you expect a short talking off for doing something but instead your parent makes a whole essay exposing you for 25 minutes

[@HashtagIM]

Bruh I thought I was underrated but you are sooo underrated. Even though you have like 1600 times more subs than me.

[@Sumsubcom]

We are all underrated!

[@sykoteddy]

The "random set of sounds" are more likely files that have been downloaded partially from torrent downloads. When downloading small pieces of the same file from different sources and the file never get finished it has a tendency to not know where in the file it is supposed to be, or, it is just those parts of the song that got downloaded. But, when using a program to restore data, I suppose the same thing happen since it didn't get all data back.

[@user-di5pm7gu4d]

Oh my God your channel is worth subscribing! Thank you.

[@randomguff2954]

You were most likely able to tell know the details of the previous owner without even turning the laptop on. It was probably written as the return address / sender on the box it was sent to you in. That said, good points about securely wiping a used PC.

[@KristopherNoronha]

most people sell their laptops as some sort of exchange/upgrade deal and those are wiped and resold. the average non-technical user probably doesn't know how to reinstall windows, and for something as cheap as this, probably won't even bother.

[@e.s.l.1083]

oh... to randomly clicking on this video 'out of the blue' and disccovering (by recognizing The Cats) that you are Helen

[@Sumsubcom]

Are you HELEN?

[@e.s.l.1083]

I admit, by some kismet, i was hoping you would ask...

[@KeyserTheRedBeard]

impressive upload Sumsub. I smashed that thumbs up on your video. Keep up the awesome work.

[@knowhere9121]

I hope Im not too late for this masterpiece of a channel!

[@JessicaFEREM]

as someone with linux knowledge, I've deleted partition tables and still booted into grub recovery. so yeah 0 your drives.

[@akatsuki2555]

How to prevent this: Run a full zero fill before selling the laptop. The same method is effective if there is a virus on the computer.

[@psplapple983]

Great channel keep on going!!

[@Sumsubcom]

Thanks man!

[@hashemx1ify]

I do think you should make a video about how protect against this in details