Where’s the most common place to misplace a USB thumb drive? In the pocket of your pants and shirts apparently. Credant Technologies recently did a survey of 500 dry cleaners and launderettes to find out how many USB sticks were found in their washing and drying machines each year, and 2010’s results were pretty shocking. A staggering total of 17,000 USB sticks were found in such places, four times the amount found in 2009. Can you imagine how much data is lost or leaked out to the public in this manner? Granted, not all USB sticks contain important files, but a good number of them must have been the cause of some important leak or provided some people with enough material to cause a scandal. At least now you know if you’re a person who likes to collect all sorts of thumb drives, you can expand your collection by hanging out at the local launderette.
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