Hackers Can Easily Lift Credit Card Info From a Used Xbox

zacharye writes "Using nothing more than a few common tools, hackers can reportedly recover credit card numbers and other personal information from used Xbox 360 consoles even after they have been restored to factory settings. Researchers at Drexel University say they have successfully recovered sensitive personal data from a used Xbox console, and they claim Microsoft is doing a disservice to users by not taking precautions to secure their data. 'Microsoft does a great job of protecting their proprietary information,' researcher Ashley Podhradsky said."

Comments

Wiping a 360 hard drive is idiotic

[Aldanga]

Straight wiping of a 360 hard drive will destroy it for future 360 use. The hard drive security sector (hddss.bin) is stored on the disk and, if erased, will render the hard drive useless on a stock 360 console. The security sector cannot be "spoofed" or otherwise as each hddss.bin is unique to the specific hard drive on which it resides. Only by backing up the specific sectors where hddss.bin is stored before wiping, then restoring them afterward, will keep the hard drive usable in a 360 console.

There are hacking tools to convert non-360 hard drives into usable drives, but not Microsoft OEM drives. I can't believe the researchers recommended a straight wipe without this caveat.