Shredder for your cell phone?

I have attempted to clear off as much personal information from my cell phone as I can before donating it to a women's shelter, but I probably left something on it that could be retrieved, although nothing as juicy as credit card numbers, banking passwords, business secrets or an affair.

Phones Spill Secrets of Previous Users and so is it worth a couple hundred dollars to sell your cell phone on eBay in exchange for potentially exposing yourself?

Many of the phones were owned personally by the sellers but crammed with sensitive corporate information, underscoring the blurring of work and home. "They don't come with a warning label that says, 'Be careful.' The data on these phones is very important," Magliato said.

"People are just not aware how much they're exposing themselves," Schmidt said. "This is more than something you pick up and talk on. This is your identity. There are people really looking to exploit this."