Things You Need To Do Before You Sell Your Android Smartphone

By Anuj

| Published: Saturday, January 31, 2015, 9:54 [IST]

With smartphones getting cheaper and affordable, many people are frequently upgrading their devices. Before you sell your old smartphone, one should know how to secure it to avoid personal data theft.

With cases like hacking on rise, it's critically important to backup all your information, before you pass on the handset to some third person.

Read on to find out how to secure your device before you put up the smartphone up for sale on Quikr, OLX and eBay.

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Step 1: Back up Your Data

Save all your data (documents, music, videos, apps, emails, and important folders) in Google Drive or DropBox. You can even backup your passwords and others devices settings.

Step 2: Remove the SIM Card

Your SIM card can store contacts and call logs. The buyer doesn't need the SIM card, but he can take advantage of stored contacts and call logs.

Step 3: Remove the SD Card

If your device has a removable SD card, remove the card and keep it with you securely. If you do plan to give way the SD card, make sure to back up the data and thoroughly wipe the card.

Step 4: Encrypting Your Data

Encrypting has its own advantages. Basically the option is built in Android and it requires you to set PIN in every time you open the device. To encrypt your data, you need to go to Settings> Security > Encrypt phone.

Step 5: Use Third-Party Wipe Applications

There are a couple of free application available that claim to wipe out smartphones. And yes, they are so much secure than the standard factory reset. You can check out Avast's antitheft app on Google Play Store.