Most users are unaware that their MFP machines store data from scan and print jobs on internal hard drives. This can leave sensitive data vulnerable to theft when the machines are sold or leased on.
Senator Bob Smith and Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein have drafted legislation that would make it mandatory in New Jersey for all data to be erased or rendered unusable when a machine changes hands.
Speaking to NJToday, Smith said: “I’ll be the first to admit that until recently, I was among the majority of Americans that had no idea that digital copiers store all of this information on their hard drive.
“As is the case with so many businesses, copiers are leased and returned at the end of a lease agreement and then sold or re-leased to a new buyer. It’s frightening to think about all the information that is potentially at risk unless we require hard drives to be erased before an owner relinquishes it.”
The legislation is being introduced to the Assembly and Senate, and will also be introduced to the US Congress in the hopes of making it federal law.
More information can be found at NJToday.
The potential risks of data theft were highlighted in a report by CBS. As reported by The Recycler, an American health organization had to warn hundreds of thousands of clients after medical records were found on machines the organization had used.