Can security devices harm DVDs and electronic devices?

A few days ago I was at Best Buy and bought a couple of DVDs and a vacuum
cleaner. The security guy at the exit had this large handheld device, and he
rubbed it around my DVDs and then rubbed it on just one part of the box that
the vacuum cleaner was in. So he was either using the device to deactivate
any security tags on my DVDs and vacuum cleaner, or using the device to
determine if I was stealing anything. I guess the device outputted some sort
of magnetic field. My question is this: would a magnetic field be harmful to
either DVDs or electronic items such as vacuum cleaners?

 

wrote:

> A few days ago I was at Best Buy and bought a couple of DVDs and a vacuum
> cleaner. The security guy at the exit had this large handheld device, and he
> rubbed it around my DVDs and then rubbed it on just one part of the box that
> the vacuum cleaner was in. So he was either using the device to deactivate
> any security tags on my DVDs and vacuum cleaner, or using the device to
> determine if I was stealing anything. I guess the device outputted some sort
> of magnetic field. My question is this: would a magnetic field be harmful to
> either DVDs or electronic items such as vacuum cleaners?

No.

-- jayembee

 

On Tue, 22 Feb 2005 02:10:26 -0500, wrote:

>My question is this: would a magnetic field be harmful to
>either DVDs or electronic items such as vacuum cleaners?
___________________________________________________________

DVDs are purely optical devices and are unaffected by magnetic fields.
Your vacuum cleaner has magnetic parts but to be damaged the magnetic
field would have to be so powerful as to actually bend something... not
going to happen from a security device.

--
BT

 

DVD and CD disks are purely optical devices. You can run these through an
MRI, and they will still play very well.

The bottom line is a big NO for harming DVD's and CD disks with a magnetic
field.

--

Jerry G.
======


<> wrote in message
news:...
A few days ago I was at Best Buy and bought a couple of DVDs and a vacuum
cleaner. The security guy at the exit had this large handheld device, and
he
rubbed it around my DVDs and then rubbed it on just one part of the box that
the vacuum cleaner was in. So he was either using the device to deactivate
any security tags on my DVDs and vacuum cleaner, or using the device to
determine if I was stealing anything. I guess the device outputted some
sort
of magnetic field. My question is this: would a magnetic field be harmful
to
either DVDs or electronic items such as vacuum cleaners?

 

On Tue, 22 Feb 2005 02:16:32 -0800, Bill Turner <> wrote:

>On Tue, 22 Feb 2005 02:10:26 -0500, wrote:
>
>>My question is this: would a magnetic field be harmful to
>>either DVDs or electronic items such as vacuum cleaners?
>___________________________________________________________
>
>DVDs are purely optical devices and are unaffected by magnetic fields.
>Your vacuum cleaner has magnetic parts but to be damaged the magnetic
>field would have to be so powerful as to actually bend something... not
>going to happen from a security device.

But the magnetic field could also induce current in the vacuum's electronic
components... would that be harmful to the vacuum at all?

 

>>going to happen from a security device.
>
> But the magnetic field could also induce current in the vacuum's
> electronic
> components... would that be harmful to the vacuum at all?

Ask the vacuum cleaner!

 

On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 01:46:53 -0500, wrote:

>But the magnetic field could also induce current in the vacuum's electronic
>components... would that be harmful to the vacuum at all?
___________________________________________________________

I've never heard of electronic components being harmed by a magnetic
field. Electric fields, yes, but not magnetic. I think the field would
have to be enormously strong to cause harm.

The only kinds of devices which could be harmed by magnetic fields are
ones that are magnetic-based themselves, such as floppy disks. Don't
worry about it.


--
BT

 

On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 09:26:46 -0800, Bill Turner <>
wrote:

>The only kinds of devices which could be harmed by magnetic fields are
>ones that are magnetic-based themselves, such as floppy disks. Don't
>worry about it.


TVs and computer monitor screens can be damaged too. Degaussing will
usually fix it, but not always.


-
-Jon Purkey - <)
For a quicker reply by email please use the
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On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 14:27:29 -0500, Jon Purkey <>
wrote:

>TVs and computer monitor screens can be damaged too. Degaussing will
>usually fix it, but not always.
___________________________________________________________

If the built in degausser doesn't fix it, find an old time TV technician
and have him dig out his manual degausser. One of those will degauss
anything.

--
BT (Old time TV tech)

 

"Jerry G." <> wrote in message
news:...
> DVD and CD disks are purely optical devices. You can run these through an
> MRI, and they will still play very well.
>
> The bottom line is a big NO for harming DVD's and CD disks with a magnetic
> field.
>
Agree:
But keep magnetic fields away from the magnetic stripe on your bank/credit
cards!
One guy laid his credit card on top of a hardware store check out security
tag cancellation device and the card got 'wiped'!

 

On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 09:26:46 -0800, Bill Turner <> wrote:

>On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 01:46:53 -0500, wrote:
>
>>But the magnetic field could also induce current in the vacuum's electronic
>>components... would that be harmful to the vacuum at all?
>___________________________________________________________
>
>I've never heard of electronic components being harmed by a magnetic
>field. Electric fields, yes, but not magnetic. I think the field would
>have to be enormously strong to cause harm.

Yeah I read that the magnetic field generated by an MRI could damage
electronic devices, so I was just wondering if it is possible that a weaker
one could also do some damage.

BTW, when you say "electric field", do you just mean static electricity?


>The only kinds of devices which could be harmed by magnetic fields are
>ones that are magnetic-based themselves, such as floppy disks. Don't
>worry about it.

 

On Sat, 26 Feb 2005 12:59:37 -0500, wrote:

>BTW, when you say "electric field", do you just mean static electricity?
___________________________________________________________

An electric field can be either static or dynamic. Any time you have
voltages of opposite polarity present, there is a field between them.

--
BT

 

On Sat, 26 Feb 2005 18:56:17 -0800, Bill Turner <> wrote:

>On Sat, 26 Feb 2005 12:59:37 -0500, wrote:
>
>>BTW, when you say "electric field", do you just mean static electricity?
>___________________________________________________________
>
>An electric field can be either static or dynamic. Any time you have
>voltages of opposite polarity present, there is a field between them.

Thanks for your answers, everyone.