Taking PC In For Repair - How Safe Is My Info/Data?
- Thread starter Foresty_Forest
- Start date
Ethan39
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If they know the password to your machine (or even if they don't and they have the knowhow/time to get around security) then your data isn't safe.
As @Solve My Problem says, if you're not using encryption to protect your passwords/files there's no obstacle for them to look at whatever they please.
As @Solve My Problem says, if you're not using encryption to protect your passwords/files there's no obstacle for them to look at whatever they please.
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UkAppCoder
I've been doing this for the last eight years. There are always a few builders selling refurbished Dell dual and quad cores on Amazon. I have five of them now; three dual cores and two quad cores. You can get the dual cores for around £100 - perfectly fine for a busy business which doesn't need to run processor-intensive apps such as those for gaming. The quad cores are going for around £150. These machines are super-fast and perfect for what I need - creating and developing apps and games in Android studio.
However, I should warn you that the machines do come with a very nasty virus - Windows 10. But it's very easy to remove this and replace it with a free Linux distro!
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I have bought two machines from Bargain Hardware (I think on the recommendation of someone here) who will do that for you.However, I should warn you that the machines do come with a very nasty virus - Windows 10. But it's very easy to remove this and replace it with a free Linux distro!
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UkAppCoder
Thanks for that, Graeme, but it's very easy to DIY.
There are some good instruction sheets on the web for the OS installation, and the wizard instructions are easy to follow. All the Linux command line instructions for installing your favourite applications (Libre Office, multimedia, etc.) can usually be found on the web within seconds.
But thanks for the recommendation. I'd like one of those giant monitors soon. This would save some scrolling around on my diagrams and always good for long pages of code.
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Thanks for that, Graeme, but it's very easy to DIY.
I agree. In fact I reinstalled on both of them because they do not pre-install the distro I use (Manjaro).
Not everyone feels comfortable install an OS too. I also like it was a confirmation the hardware has Linux drivers (although that is not often a problem with older machines).
My daughter recently bought a machine from them too. She got it with Windows because she needs some Windows only software for university and right now she does not want the time or risk of getting it to work in a VM or with WINE and she did not have a Windows license. Once her exams are over she plans to "upgrade" (her choice of word - I must have brought her up well) to Linux.
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Getting back to the original question...
It's down to the workshop's integrity so make sure you choose one that's recommended and not some kid working out of a back bedroom who doesn't pay vat, insurance etc...
When I had my workshop, I was fully insured and to be honest, you shouldn't be keeping passwords in clear text on a PC anyway. Use Lastpass or similar.
But what really stops a technician is TIME. I was so busy I simply didn't have time to go seeking out your stash of artistic films or photos of your missus. Worst case, I'd look to find an example of a file type that you'd reported you couldn't open - just to text the fix but that was it. So far as I was concerned, it's your private data. I wouldn't snoop.
That said, if I'd come across any kiddie stuff as I checked through the hard drive structure then I'd have been straight on to Police. Thankfully never did.
Don't take your hard drive out of the machine - hard to test, fix & test without it! If you habitually have documents that you're concerned about because of intellectual rights or whatever then keep them on an external hard drive so the faulty machine can still be repaired. And backup. For the love of the Holy Eccles Cake, BACKUP!
It's down to the workshop's integrity so make sure you choose one that's recommended and not some kid working out of a back bedroom who doesn't pay vat, insurance etc...
When I had my workshop, I was fully insured and to be honest, you shouldn't be keeping passwords in clear text on a PC anyway. Use Lastpass or similar.
But what really stops a technician is TIME. I was so busy I simply didn't have time to go seeking out your stash of artistic films or photos of your missus. Worst case, I'd look to find an example of a file type that you'd reported you couldn't open - just to text the fix but that was it. So far as I was concerned, it's your private data. I wouldn't snoop.
That said, if I'd come across any kiddie stuff as I checked through the hard drive structure then I'd have been straight on to Police. Thankfully never did.
Don't take your hard drive out of the machine - hard to test, fix & test without it! If you habitually have documents that you're concerned about because of intellectual rights or whatever then keep them on an external hard drive so the faulty machine can still be repaired. And backup. For the love of the Holy Eccles Cake, BACKUP!
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Anyone who knows me knows I don't like paying over the odds for anything!
But just why would you take a device containing all sorts of personal or business data that if lost, would be either a ballache, disaster or tragic loss of memories to someone with no track record, no certifications & no professional indemnity insurance?
Mind you, I did quite well out of repairing their cock-ups...
"Low skill set?". Hmm. Yes, it might be if you're just replacing a laptop battery but rebuilding the registry to coax a treasured family PC back to life, actually fixing rather than just re-imaging because the client never did any backups takes experience and problem solving skills. And decades of qualifications & experience on all sorts of electronic systems in my case. Alas, like so many other areas, people would rather throw away than repair.
There's more to IT than just box-shifting and shouting LINUX at random passers-by y'know. ?
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Which OS should I avoid unless I want to spend time building apps from source that don't quite run on my distro, having spent time getting all the tools to work, spending time trawling the net to decide which of many alternative "solution's" actually applies to my distro, spending time figuring out which libraries i actually need for which apps, etc., etc., ...
I do use Linux and this is the reality once you get away from all but the simplest tasks.
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What are you doing with Linux that needs all that? I have not built an application from source for many years (I think about a decade) unless it was something I wrote. I think the last time I needed to compile something just to install it was because I wanted a more recent version of Fossil (version control) than was in the Debian repositories.
What Linux distro are you using that does not install all dependencies when needed? One of the key advantages of Linux is you do not need to worry about the equivalent of dll hell.
I guess I only do the simplest tasks then. Installing and managing multiple servers, developing software, etc. on top of all the usual small office stuff (accounts, spreadsheets, databases etc.) and some personal stuff (games, photo management, etc.). On top of that I use a moderately geeky distro (Manjaro) so should have more problems than most.
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UkAppCoder
We're through the worst of those days now. There's still some of it around. But even during the worst times, it was always well worth the effort in order to avoid continual Windows trauma.
Linux has been branched countless times. It is fast becoming a proper user's desktop OS. But care must be taken. Linux still needs to retain its original purpose as a secure networking OS.
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Any chance to move this thread to time out as the Linux fanboys taking over here.
I personally think Linux is not fit for consumer end-user purpose.
There are so many issues with drivers it is simple a nightmare to get it running. It can be done but it takes a lot of doing if even possible.
Decent GPU acceleration and drivers are poor and even with nvidia and amd drivers 50% slower than on Windows and MacOS,
Running a game on Linux good luck with that it is not smooth experience at all.
Multi monitor support with high refresh rates and different resolutions brace yourself. Input devices good luck getting them to work correctly.
Encryption on Linux very slow compared to Bitlocker. Power management under Linux poor at best specially on laptops.
Security not sure either with all the fishing stuff these days not sure how Linux will prevent that.
Furthermore Linux kernel consistently remains one of the most vulnerable pieces of software in the entire world. In 2017 it had 453 vulnerabilities vs. 268 in the entire Windows 10 OS. No wonder Google intends to replace Linux with its own kernel.
Year 2015 welcomed us with 134 vulnerabilities in one package alone: WebKitGTK+ WSA-2015-0002. I'm not implying that Linux is worse than Windows/MacOS proprietary/closed software - I'm just saying that the mantra that open source is more secure by definition because everyone can read the code is apparently totally wrong.
Year 2016 pleased us with several local root Linux kernel vulnerabilities as well as countless other critical vulnerabilities. In 2016 Linux turned out to be significantly more insecure than often-ridiculed and laughed-at Microsoft Windows.
A galore of software bugs across all applications. Just look into KDE or Gnome bugzilla's - some bugs are now over ten years old with over several dozens of duplicates and no one is working on them. KDE/Gnome/etc. developers are busy adding new features and breaking old APIs. Fixing bugs is of course a tedious and difficult chore.
Most Linux distributions do not audit included packages which means a rogue evil application or a rogue evil patch can easily make it into most distros, thus endangering the end user (it has happened several times already).
All in Linux is not fit at the current stage for consumers to have a nice experience but it has its place for certain tasks and user but is not the answer for everything.
I personally think Linux is not fit for consumer end-user purpose.
There are so many issues with drivers it is simple a nightmare to get it running. It can be done but it takes a lot of doing if even possible.
Decent GPU acceleration and drivers are poor and even with nvidia and amd drivers 50% slower than on Windows and MacOS,
Running a game on Linux good luck with that it is not smooth experience at all.
Multi monitor support with high refresh rates and different resolutions brace yourself. Input devices good luck getting them to work correctly.
Encryption on Linux very slow compared to Bitlocker. Power management under Linux poor at best specially on laptops.
Security not sure either with all the fishing stuff these days not sure how Linux will prevent that.
Furthermore Linux kernel consistently remains one of the most vulnerable pieces of software in the entire world. In 2017 it had 453 vulnerabilities vs. 268 in the entire Windows 10 OS. No wonder Google intends to replace Linux with its own kernel.
Year 2015 welcomed us with 134 vulnerabilities in one package alone: WebKitGTK+ WSA-2015-0002. I'm not implying that Linux is worse than Windows/MacOS proprietary/closed software - I'm just saying that the mantra that open source is more secure by definition because everyone can read the code is apparently totally wrong.
Year 2016 pleased us with several local root Linux kernel vulnerabilities as well as countless other critical vulnerabilities. In 2016 Linux turned out to be significantly more insecure than often-ridiculed and laughed-at Microsoft Windows.
A galore of software bugs across all applications. Just look into KDE or Gnome bugzilla's - some bugs are now over ten years old with over several dozens of duplicates and no one is working on them. KDE/Gnome/etc. developers are busy adding new features and breaking old APIs. Fixing bugs is of course a tedious and difficult chore.
Most Linux distributions do not audit included packages which means a rogue evil application or a rogue evil patch can easily make it into most distros, thus endangering the end user (it has happened several times already).
All in Linux is not fit at the current stage for consumers to have a nice experience but it has its place for certain tasks and user but is not the answer for everything.
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UkAppCoder
And yet you are the only one in this thread who has not suggested a solution for the OP's problem!
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What utter nonsense.
FWIW, I use Windows, MacOS and Linux. They ALL have their good AND bad points. And to suggest Linux for a day to day business machine (considering the OP is having to take their PC in for repair so is clearly not overly tech savvy) is ridiculous.
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Did you make that statistic up on your Linux distro? I've yet to have a Linux distro that didn't crash and burn at some point. Or one that actually performed as well, or was at practical, as a Windows machine in a business environment.
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How so?
If the machine is taken to the workshop with no hard drive in order to secure data, how would a software fault be determined? One could of course install a new drive and installation of Windows, but that would not determine if the original build was at fault.
No sir, I very clearly missed no point at all. It would seem to me that you didn't actually 'think' at all. Please read the thread correctly, in context and glean a minimal understanding of what has been posted before suggesting re-installing Windows would fix the problem on a computer where no hard drive was present so as to make it impossible to determine if the fault is software related or not.
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I originally asked "what if it's a software fault" to someone who suggested not taking the hard drive in.
Your answer, "Reinstall Windows. Usually fixes it".
Please do be bothered to explain how you would ascertain that reinstalling Windows would "fix it" on an absent hard drive.
You can't be "bothered" because you now realise something I highlighted to you some while ago.
You missed the point.
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