Already going to dump that new RAZR for something flashier and sexier? Be careful that your used mobile doesn't tell tales on you. With customers upgrading every 18 months on average now, more and more used mobiles are finding their way onto secondary markets (or car boot sales), and like second hand PCs, many still contain private and sometimes salacious information about their previous owners' lives.

A story in today's New York Times ought to make you think twice about not scrubbing that device cleaner than clean before flogging it on eBay.

Among the things recovered in one test alone were:

-One company's plans to win a multimillion-dollar federal transportation contract.

-E-mails about another firm's $50,000 payment for a software license.

-Bank accounts and passwords.

-Details of prescriptions and receipts for one worker's utility payments.

So, wipe that baby clean before you trade it on for another. Better yet, be careful what you store where. Here's one article with suggestions.