Android users attention! Factory reset does not mean deleting personal data

Recently, according to foreign media reports, if you are an Android user and want to sell your mobile phone, then you have to be careful, restore the factory settings to delete personal data and can not really delete all the data. Avast, a security company, said restoring factory settings simply deletes data at the application level and personal data can still be recovered.

Researchers at security firm Avast have recovered thousands of photos, hundreds of emails and texts, or even a complete loan application, from used mobile phones purchased online. Although users of these devices are already using factory-set or "delete all" features, researchers can easily recover after analyzing the underlying data.

Jude McColgan, Avast's president, said in a statement, "The amount of personal data we get from Android phones is staggering." The report shows that Avast researchers have purchased 20 handsets. And restored over 40,000 photos with "ready-made recovery software," including about 250 naked men's selfies, about 1,500 family photos, over 750 e-mail messages and 250 addresses. At the same time, they also confirmed the identities of the four owners.

Jude McColgan said, "When consumers buy mobile phones and do not realize that they are selling their personal information, selling used mobile phones is a good way to make money, but it is likely to expose your privacy." Of course, the report is not entirely charitable. Avast also promoted its own Android user privacy protection security software. This free anti-theft app completely erases the data on the device.

Android users can also enable Android's built-in encryption to protect their own data. This feature is turned off by default, this feature encrypts all data on the device and is protected with a password.