How to secure my personal data when I resale it?

A

AC Question

My android phone is about to get a new owner, how shall I make sure so this person do not get access to my personal data? A simple factory reset do not seems to be enough from what I have been reading. So how about this.

Step 1 I do a factory reset (goes fast, but do not seem to be a real factory reset)

Step 2 I fill the phone with a lot of unpersonal data like apps to the phone max storage, in the purpose to that shall overwrite my "deleted" personal data

Step 3 I do a encrypt

Step 4 I do another factory reset, and while I have to write the same gmail account as before I do not have log into it so to speak, so I do not. Will this be enough?

If it makes any different my phone is moto x style(pure)
 

Ketchis

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Jul 31, 2016
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Thanks for the reply Grimwald, then what I will do should be even more safer. The thing is that I have done 2 reset, but I have notice if i go through every step they suggest and log in to the google play store during the startup process, then at least all downloaded apps will still be there, and since all apps are there I wonder what else could be there? As mention you have to use the email account that was used the first time you started the device, and since that email is the same as for google play store and chrome maybe they are always linked and thefore always restorable?
 

GRIMWALD

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You have lost me, the whole point of doing the factory reset was to remove all of your accounts and their information. Why would you re-enter that information The idea is to give it to the new owner, so that he can put his information into the device.

GRIM
 

GRIMWALD

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Turn the device off, remove your Sim, turn device on, immediately use the hardware buttons to do a factory reset and repeat for a second time for good measure.
Do not add any information just do the reset and leave the device off for the new owner to install his Sim and add his accounts.

GRIM
 

GRIMWALD

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Of course it does, it wants to set up the device to be used.
That doesn't mean for you to re-enter your info. When the screen, whatever screen displays, just use the hardware buttons to do a factory reset.

GRIM
 

GRIMWALD

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I don't know of any other way to explain it to you, if it is asking for you to enter information, it is because the information isn't there. That is the point of doing the reset, so that someone else can put their information on the device. You have done enough resets to have over written anything which may have been recoverable. So you are safe, after the reset, turn the device off and if you haven't already done so remove the Sim.

GRIM
 

Ketchis

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The info is very much still there, despite the factory reset, it works as a lock. look at the video. after the "factory reset" it says,

"The device have been reset. To continue sign in with a google account that was previously synced to this device."

If you type any other email you can not access the phone after the factory reset, so you can not just simple write a new email, you have to write the same email and the know the password as well. If I do as you say and do not write that, it will be useless for the new owner unless he do a bypass.

Btw there are tons of videos showing that factory reset are not very safe.
 

GRIMWALD

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As an update and an FYI. I had to reset my wife's Note 5 last night, so I took the opportunity to play around a little. When I removed her lock screen pass code and fingerprint security before resetting her device. I had no problem setting up a different account with it.
Now a Samsung is not a Moto but if the protection isn't there to trip the Factory reset protection, I don't see why it would trip the Moto's protection either.

GRIM
 

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