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More on the theme of keeping your information secure, this time regarding cell phones. Cell phones are the workhorse gadgets of the real estate industry, used by about 96% of REALTORS® at least a few times a week, according to the 2005 NAR Member Profile. Most consumers trade in their cell phones for a newer model every 18 months or so, but what happens to the information stored in your phone when you sell it or give it away? "Selling your old phone once you upgrade to a fancier model can be like handing over your diaries. All sorts of sensitive information pile up inside our cell phones, and deleting it may be more difficult than you think," warns the Associated Press.
Before getting rid of your old phone, it's important to clear out any sensitive information that might be stored on it -- address books, instant messages, e-mails, etc. Simply resetting the phone often isn't sufficient, even if the data stored on the phone appears to be gone, since software programs are available that can restore the information. Instead, take a good look at your phone's owner's manual or the manufacturer's website for directions on wiping old data. "Phone manufacturers usually provide instructions for safely deleting a customer's information, but it's not always convenient or easy to find," the AP article says. The companies make the process difficult to find, partly to prevent customers from accidentally deleting their data before they're ready to move on to a new phone.
Of course, if you're really worried about what someone might find on your phone after you're done with it, there's always the more drastic method suggested by computer security expert Peter Zatko: "I'd run over the phone," Zatko told the AP. "Maybe give it an acid bath." That might not be very beneficial for the resale value of the phone, but it does the job of keeping your information out of someone else's hands.
For some in the real estate business, public wi-fi hotspots are lifesavers when it comes to checking and sending e-mail. A few minutes at the local coffee shop is all it takes to hook up to the internet and catch up on essential correspondence. Free wireless networks are becoming more widespread, which is great for convenience, but anyone connecting to the Web this way needs to also be aware that there are some risks involved. "A healthy dose of paranoia is helpful,'' says Sherman Hall, a task force agent with the Atherton, CA, Police Department, in yesterday's San Jose Mercury News. "Assume others are monitoring your traffic.''
You can protect your computer and your information by taking some simple steps. The Mercury News article recommends installing a personal firewall or virtual private network (VPN) on your laptop. Don't send e-mails that include sensitive passwords or account numbers, and make sure that any banking or other e-commerce sites you do business with while on a public network feature a secure connection -- look for that little padlock icon in the lower right corner of your browser.
So be wary, but don't panic, advises another article in the Mercury News. "Of course, the Internet will never be entirely safe -- anymore than the real world will ever be completely crime-free. But...only a few reasonable precautions are required to reduce online security risks to a reasonable level." For more tips on keeping your information safe, both online and off, check out NAR's Guides to Protecting Real Estate Information on Realtor.org.
Some interesting auto-related items caught our attention this week. And why not? Garages are among the most desired home features, according to NAR research, and a car is often one of the most essential tools in a REALTOR®'s business. So here goes: In future summer droughts, you might keep your car clean by washing it in an inflatable "dishwasher" in your driveway, says the BBC News. Developed by Britain's Motor Industry Research Association (Mira), the gadget washes cars in a mixture of steam and fine mist, using just 4 liters of water. Mira imagines the car dishwasher would be used by commercial enterprises before becoming an "aspirational item" for the home.
Of course, Mira's dishwasher device won't be of much use if you can't convince the garage to give back your car, which in the future could be more of a problem than you might think. A robotic parking facility in Hoboken, New Jersey, refused to retrieve the cars it had parked last week, reports Wired News, leaving several irrate drivers without wheels. The malfunction was caused by an expired software license, which the city forgot to renew.
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