Donate your unused phone.

*24 year old woman.

Just a warning to anyone thinking of donating a device:
People need to be careful giving away used phones/electronics. If you device hasn't been first fully encrypted and then factory reset/wiped any person can easily recover your photos and documents. Personally, all my old electronics get taken apart, beaten with a hammer and then lit on fire.

 

Underdeveloped country full of desperate people with lots of Chinese, communist and Muslim sympathizers/terrorists/groups, close proximity to the garbage Chinese communist party, NPA, Muslim extremist military/naval bases and strongholds, long (and recent) work history with US military/government...

If someone were in the situation above giving away electronic devices is a great way to find yourself in a situation of having to choose between giving in to blackmail demands or contacting your government security agencies to initiate an investigation...and those two options would both suck a massive donkey d*ck.

 

I imagine most with combat military training naturally would field strip discarded electronics that contained or held data (or still holds such data) that is not over written or harvests digital footprints. Manufacturers of these phones in no way let a purchaser in any country know the (full capabilities) of said cell phone. To smash one to bits once discarded is clearly the best and only choice if your at any level of understanding the threats. It is in no way paranoia. Activation codes, and the phone numbers provided to call the phone remains and can be mined that also leads right back to the provider and all information the provider has on said account and or User.

Most know what a burner phone is. To smash it to bits is not paranoia just after one call. Sure it's due to tracing (but really?) Not to mention your DNA, prints, device serial number and warranty (in your name perhaps? Childs or Wifes?) The GPS information is stored with agencies permanently and again can be recovered with serial numbers. All the images posted from said cell phone to the Net, have properties that by many a hacker also most experts can mine all said images and discover any and all there is needed to know. Often knowing more about the individual than the individual knows about themselves. Anyways I could add a dozen more factors (some classified) but instead will reiterate. Smash those phones to bloody bits and the only way to do better is by never owning one.

I would like to add that Big Brother is no where near the ultimate threat.