An older gold smartphone lying flat on a wooden table.

Selling Or Handing Down An Old Phone Without Wiping It First Can Hand Strangers Your Photos And Accounts, So Sign Out, Factory Reset And Remove The SIM

October 28, 202621Views

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Maybe you got a shiny new phone for the holidays, or the grandkids need a hand-me-down tablet, or you spotted a decent price for your old device on a resale site. It feels harmless to toss the old one in a box and send it on its way. But that little gadget holds more of your life than almost anything else you own: years of photos, text messages, saved passwords, banking apps, email and maybe even your location history. Pass it along without wiping it first, and you could be handing a stranger the keys to your private world.

The good news is that protecting yourself takes less than an hour and costs nothing. Here is how to do it right.

What Is Still on That Old Phone

Think about what you do on your phone every day. You take pictures, send messages, check email, log in to shopping sites and bank accounts, and use apps that remember who you are. Even if you never write down a password, your phone may remember it for you. If the device is not cleared, someone who gets hold of it may be able to find a lot more than you would like to share. A device that is still signed in to your accounts can also cause headaches such as locked accounts and trouble for the next owner.

Step by Step: Wipe It the Right Way

Back up what you want to keep. Save your photos, contacts, messages and files to your cloud account or to your new device before you erase anything. Once the phone is wiped, those items on the old device are gone. Check that your photos really made it over before you move on.
Sign out of your accounts. On an iPhone, sign out of your Apple account. On an Android phone, remove your Google account and any others you have added. Also sign out of any apps that keep you logged in, such as email, banking and shopping.
Turn off device-finding features. Both Apple and Google offer features that help you locate a lost phone and that lock it to your account. Turning these off, or signing out of the account they are tied to, is important. If you skip this step, the next owner may find the phone locked to you and unusable.
Remove any smartwatch or accessory pairing. If a watch or other accessory is paired to the phone, unpair it first so it does not stay connected to the old device.
Factory reset the device. Look in your settings for the option to erase all content and settings, which may be called a factory reset or something similar. This clears your personal data and returns the phone to the way it was when it came out of the box. It may take a few minutes.
Remove the SIM card. The small SIM card ties the phone to your number and carrier. Take it out and keep it, or ask your carrier what to do with it. If your phone uses a digital SIM, ask your carrier how to move or remove it, or check your settings.
Take out any memory card. Some Android phones and tablets have a removable memory card, which can hold photos and files. Pull it out before the device leaves your hands.

Do Not Forget the Tablet

Tablets get passed around the family more than almost any other gadget, and they are easy to overlook. If the old one has been used for reading email, watching shows, playing games or video chatting, it is probably still signed in to several accounts. Treat it exactly like a phone: back up, sign out, turn off the finding feature, reset and remove any card.

Check Before You Hand It Over

When the reset finishes, turn the device on and look at what appears. A properly wiped phone or tablet should show a welcome or setup screen, asking someone to choose a language and sign in, not your home screen and photos. If you still see your things, run the reset again.

It is also smart to go online afterward and look at the list of devices linked to your accounts. Your Apple or Google account settings show which devices are signed in. If the old one still appears, remove it from the list. Change your passwords on important accounts if you have any doubts at all.

Selling or Trading In

If you plan to sell your phone, take your time and be cautious about meeting buyers. Choose a public place, and never send a device before you have been paid in a way you trust. A trade-in program or a carrier will often give you instructions for clearing your device first, so follow them. Either way, finish your own wipe before you part with the phone.

Handing It Down to Family

Even when the phone is going to a grandchild or a cousin, wipe it. It keeps your messages and photos private, and it gives the new owner a clean start with their own accounts. Your family will thank you, and so will your own privacy.

A few quiet minutes with your settings menu is all it takes. Back up, sign out, reset and pull the SIM, and that old phone can go on to a second life without taking a piece of yours along.