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Dumpster Diving:Trashing - GeeksforGeeks

Dumpster diving is a method used in information security where hackers search through trash to find sensitive information that can be exploited for phishing and identity fraud. Common targets include personal data, financial records, and business secrets. Preventive measures include shredding documents, securely deleting data, and raising awareness about these threats.

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21 views2 pages

Dumpster Diving:Trashing - GeeksforGeeks

Dumpster diving is a method used in information security where hackers search through trash to find sensitive information that can be exploited for phishing and identity fraud. Common targets include personal data, financial records, and business secrets. Preventive measures include shredding documents, securely deleting data, and raising awareness about these threats.

Uploaded by

tbnssrdwdt
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Dumpster Diving/Trashing - GeeksforGeeks 15/02/25, 9:48 PM

Aptitude Engineering Mathematics Discrete Mathematics Operating System DBMS Computer Netwo

Dumpster Diving/Trashing
Last Updated : 30 Sep, 2022

There is a famous saying that most of you might have listened,


“One man’s trash is another man’s treasure”. That means what
one person considers worthless might be of high value to the
other. The concept of Dumpster Diving relies upon the above
stated idiom.

In the world of Information Security and Cyber threats, Dumpster


diving is the process of searching trash to obtain useful
information about a person/business that can later be used for
the hacking purpose. This attack mostly targets large
organizations or business to carry out phishing (mostly) by
sending fake emails to the victims that appear to have come from
a legitimate source. The information obtained by compromising
the confidentiality of the victim is used for Identity frauds.

What does a hacker look for?

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Dumpster Diving/Trashing - GeeksforGeeks 15/02/25, 9:48 PM

Email address/address
Phone numbers to carry out Vishing
Passwords and other social security numbers that we might
have written on sticky notes for our convenience
Bank statements/financial statements
Medical records
Important documents
Account login credentials
Business secrets
Marketing secrets
Information of the employee base
Information about the software/tools/technologies that is
being used at the company

Preventive Measures:

Destroy any CDs/DVDs containing personal data.


In case you no longer need your PC, make sure you have
deleted all the data so that it can’t be recovered.
Use of firewalls can prevent suspicious Internet users from
accessing the discarded data.
Paper documents should be permanently destroyed/shredded.
Companies should lock waste bins and should have a safe
disposal policy.

We can take several effective steps to ensure our safety. But the
most important step in the process of ensuring safety still
remains the same. And it is to spread awareness among your
known ones. Perhaps, this is the best thing we can do to mark us
safe in this flood of threats. Stay safe.

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