If you watched tonight’s Real Story programme on the BBC and if you did what I wrote in the title above and you did not make sure that you deleted all the information on your computer hard drive, then you may well have a big problem.
I am amazed that people still don’t understand that data is NOT really deleted from your PC when you use the ‘DELETE’ key, as all this does is to tell the computer not to track that data anymore and that the computer can now use the space that the file previously used .
The only way that you can be 100% sure that your data is removed from your computers hard drive is to use one of the many secure delete programs available that overwrites all of your old computers hard drive data with random characters (0’s, £’s, ?’s) and to make sure that it does a good job, it does this a number of times.
Free Programs such as Mark Russinovich’s (this is the guy that uncovered the Sony Root kit debacle last year) and Bryce Cogswell’s SDelete; Object Media’s secureDelete; Heidi Computer’s Eraser are available for download over the Internet, you should of course only use these after you’ve moved you data on to the your new computer, sound obvious I know!
There are also of course many commercial (paid for) programs that include secure delete options. For me, the only true way to ensure that none of your data goes AWOL, and this is what I have done ever since I’ve worked with computers, is to either a) keep the disk and to reuse them as second/third discs in other computers, or b) physically destroy them, by running a screwdriver down the connection pins to break them, and then knocking some of the chips of the control board if it has one. Finally if I could, I’ve opened the drive and broken the platters inside! However if you try this yourself, be careful as you will be exposed to sharp bits of metal and other potential hazards.
One thing for sure, none of my data will ever end up on a council waste tip. Make sure that your data doesn’t either!
Powered by Qumana
Beasley's Place 