TEST FOR BACKGROUD COLLECTORS. ============================== November 23, 2002. When user deletes files from hard drive this does not mean that this information is physically erased from the hard drive. Moreover, some programs will pick up and attach this "background information" to their files unexpectably for user. In this test hard drive was filled with bogus Credit Card, Password, Social Security Numbers before Windows 95 installation. Then, afer Windows and Internet Explorer installation, two auxiliary Outlook Express files accomualted hundreds credit card and social security numbers: Inbox.dbx contains 565 credit card numbers and 1130 social security numbers. "trash file", "Deleted Items.dbx", contains 375 social security numbers and 188 credit card numbers. Examples of Inbox.dbx and "Deleted Items.dbx" are enclosed. User can try own test by writing an arbitrary text files to hard drive, deleting them, using Outlook Express, and reading auxiliary files using text editor like Wordpad as this done in Test 2 below. mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm Below are details of the test: After upgrading to Internet Explorer IE5.50 4807.2300 Update versions SP2, which upgraded Windows 95 e-mail software to Outlook Express 5.50 4807.1700. After importing current content of previously installed Microsoft e-mail software and deleting Inbox content, it was found that "trash file" "Deleted Items.dbx" contains about 375 social security numbers and 188 credit card numbers. After sending and receiving one e-mail message (which can be found on Inbox.dbx file) Inbox.dbx contains 565 credit card numbers and 1130 social security numbers. This files may be found in c:\Windows\Application Data\Identities\"long name with digits"\Microsoft\Outlook Express folder or similar depending on specific computer. Please note that this background information does not have any relation to a "visible" in Outlook Mail boxes information which user delt with. Background information is not the information which is in Windows Recycle Bin or not necessarily information which "was erased from" Outlook Express. Test 2. ======= Empty space on hard drive was filled by copying one file using Windows Explorer containing some bogus information as password, SSN, Credit Card Numbers. Then this files were erased from hard drive by Windows Explorer, and deleted from Recicle Bin. After using Outlok Expres, Inbox.dbx contains 669 passwords, SSNs, Credit Card Numbers as seen in enclosed file renamed to Inbox.dbx.after_explorer.txt Test 3. ======= Microsoft Access Database files. (Not sure Windows 95 or 98). Test similar to Test 2 done for this file. After using somedatabase.mdb it "absorbed" from background: 139 Social Security: 273-00-8182 numbers 139 Credit card numbers: 4133 4568 3848 8406 and other information. Public_LC_License.txt