How to permanently erase sensitive and confidential data from PC

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Guest

Please advise how one can permanently erase sensitive and confidential data
from PC.Was informed that even formating the hard disk may not be
secured.Please help.
 
"Eraser" is one of the many free programs designed to do what you want.
http://www.tolvanen.com/eraser/ for info and dl'd.
I am sure that many of the others work just as well, but, I have used this
one, it is easy and works well.
Heirloom, old and must repair my
birdhouse
 
Smash the heck out of the hard drive with a sledge hammer and then burn the
drive.

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In
 
ASPEN said:
Please advise how one can permanently erase sensitive and
confidential data from PC.Was informed that even formating the hard
disk may not be secured.Please help.
Click to expand...


You can't.

There are available a number of software products that overwrite the data
multiple times.This makes the data *much* harder to recover. But it's not
impossible. There are companies that specialize in sophisticated and
expensive data recovery techniques that can often retrieve overwritten data,
even data overwritten multiple times. This is why the US government destroys
drives containing really sensitive data in a furnace.

For most of us, simply deleting the files, or formatting the drive, is good
enough. If you want to be more paranoid, use one of the overwriting programs
I mentioned above. But realize that, short of physical destruction, there's
no such thing as permanent, perfect erasure.
 
Thank you Ken Blake for the good informative background.I will give
Heirloom's advice a try and use Wesley Vogel's method as a last resort.Thanks
everyone.
 
ASPEN said:
Please advise how one can permanently erase sensitive and confidential data
from PC.Was informed that even formating the hard disk may not be
secured.Please help.
Click to expand...


To protect your personal information and data from any future users
of average skills, you should, at the very least, format the hard drive.
If you wish to do a more thorough job of protecting your friend's
personal data, WipeDrive 2.2.1
(http://www.accessdata.com/Product07_Overview.htm?ProductNum=07) meets
U.S. DoD standards for securely cleaning surplus unclassified hard
drives, and could be used before formatting and reinstalling the OS and
applications.



--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of
chains and slavery? .... I know not what course others may take, but as
for me, give me liberty, or give me death! -Patrick Henry
 
ASPEN said:
Thank you Ken Blake for the good informative background.I will give
Click to expand...


You're weclome.

Heirloom's advice a try
Click to expand...


That should be good enough for almost anyone. As long as you realize that it
isn't perfect.

and use Wesley Vogel's method as a last
resort.Thanks everyone.
Click to expand...


Wes's advice was essentially the same as mine. He just said it more
humorously.
 
Stan said:
Wed, 15 Feb 2006 20:00:55 -0700 from Bruce Chambers



"The page cannot be found"

By Googling I found this page:
http://www.accessdata.com/products/wipe/
Click to expand...


Looks like I'll have to update that response. Thanks for the update, Stan.


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of
chains and slavery? .... I know not what course others may take, but as
for me, give me liberty, or give me death! -Patrick Henry
 
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