How to Permanently Delete Data

These days computers are more and more integrated into our lives. Because of this we store personal data which can be misused in the wrong hands. So the question is when it’s time to get rid of your old computer how can you make sure that the data you want to get rid of is permanently gone?

You hear in the press all the time that it is possible to recover data under any situation. This is not strictly true it is possible to deleted data completely without having to physically destroy the hard drive. However it does involve more than deleting and emptying the recycle bin.

Depending on what extent you want to delete data there are many software solutions. Below we choose two that we think are the most effective:

Eraser
Eraser is a Windows utility that allows you to securely erase files, file slack space or cluster tips (the space that is not occupied by the data in a file, but nonetheless allocated to that file by the operating system), Windows virtual memory swap file, unused space on a hard disk, or an entire hard disk or floppy disk or Zip disk or the like. It is able to wipe data using pseudo-random data (or any combination of data that you specify), any number of times you wish (e.g., once, or using the US Department of Defense (DOD) recommendations of either 3 times or 7 times, or the Gutmann recommendation of 35 times, etc.). It is also able to erase the file names in the directories for files you delete. The program is open source and works under Windows 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP.

Darik’s Boot and Nuke
Darik’s Boot and Nuke is a utility that you use when you want to completely obliterate all your data in all your hard disks and their partitions. It comes in the form of a bootable floppy disk or a bootable CDROM image (you download whichever you prefer), complete with an operating system (Linux) and the Boot and Nuke utility. Once you boot up that floppy (or CDROM), the utility will proceed to destroy all your data in every partition of every hard disk. The site says that it is designed for bulk or emergency data destruction. (It is probably also useful in less dramatic cases, such as when you want to wipe your disks prior to giving your computer away to someone.)

Writing zeros to a drive is a sure way to erase data. There is some debate how many passes is necessary to erase data completely. However, 1 pass is enough for data to never be recovered again. But if you are paranoid then you can pass Zeros through the drive as many as you feel necessary.

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