Before you sell, donate, or otherwise retire your current cell phone, you should be sure to wipe the memory. Otherwise your contacts and other data could end up in the hands of a stranger — not a pleasant thought, right? PC Magazine has tips on deleting cell-phone data, starting with a visit to your carrier:
If you’ve just bought a new phone from your carrier, you can take your old and new phones to the carrier’s store. They’ll wipe out the old phone for you, and they’ll probably be able to transfer your contacts to the new phone, too (though they may charge you about $10). Then you can give the old phone away, sell it on eBay or CellForCash.com or donate it to a charity by dropping it off at the carrier retail store.
The author also offers phone-specific advice for everything from BlackBerrys to iPhones to Windows Mobile phones. Definitely worth a read if you’re preparing to put an old phone out to pasture.
