How does one clean computer before donation or trashing? (1 Viewer)

[AllanN]

All of the following packages are approved by the United States Department of Defense for data erasure.

Or any other wipe utility that wipes at DoD spec. However the most reliable solution is:

1. Remove Hard Drive
2. Reuse Hard Drive as second drive in new computer.
3. When old hard drive finally outlives its usefulness or fails remove hard drive again.
4. Strike with large hammer numerous times until it does not resemble a hard drive anymore.

Simple!

I don’t really buy whole new systems, mine is in a constant state of upgrade. I never throw out or give away a hard drives. Once there life cycle ends they are terminated with extreme prejudice.

 

[John_Bonner]

If you do decide to donate it after running "kill disk", remember to reformat and load the operating system. I saw a segment on The Screen Savers with a rep from a charity who said that so many times they get donated computers with no OS's or applications.

Here's a link to the story with some charitable websites:

DonatePC

 

[Gordon Moore]

Here's a second vote for eraser which now includes tools for a making a boot disk called NUKE.

Hammer's work the best SledgeHammer's work faster but a really powerful electromagnet would work in a pinch as well (just don't get it near anything else elctronic or it's bye-bye)

 

[DustinLC]

Can someone recommend the best hammer to use?

 

[John_Berger]

Jack hammer.

 

[Chas_T]

Big Enough??

 

[Michael Harris]

It all comes down to acceptable risk. Using the DoD standard to radomly write 1's and 0's should do the trick. You have to ask yourself is there someone out there who is going to take the time and effort to try to recover info from the drive. If you totally slick the disk and use the products above, reformat, reload an OS to make it useful to the intended recipient you should be ok.

That being said I have physically destroyed many hard drives during my time in the Navy because there is no approved means to totally remove "classified" material from a hard drive. But as I said above it comes down to acceptable risk.

 

[John_Berger]

Big Enough??

I sure as hell hope so!

 

[Philip Hamm]

If you do decide to donate it after running "kill disk", remember to reformat and load the operating system. I saw a segment on The Screen Savers with a rep from a charity who said that so many times they get donated computers with no OS's or applications.

Well, that is if you're not re-using the same OS on your new computer. In that case it would be a license infringement to run the same OS version on multiple computers.

 

[AllanN]

But before formatting the new eBay drive, make sure you pull out your disc utilities to try to sneak a peek at the previous user's personal files...

There was a article a while back in either WEIRD or 2600 where someone spent $500 and purchased a bunch of HD's from eBay and ended up retrieving ALLOT of information that could be used for malicious purposes. Some where even from government agencies, corporations and home users.

Michael is correct though, it’s all about acceptable risk. Wiping with DoD standard tools will keep 99.9 percent of people from reading that disk.

 

[Tony Casler]

The only way is to physically destroy the hard drive. Don't buy into the DoD Standard stuff, either. I am in the Navy, working in cyrptology, and I assure you that we destroy every hard drive before disposing of a computer. I's great fun too, sitting around a desk, taking hard drives apart and creatively abusing the platters while making huge piles of magnets that can really screw with a monitor.

 

[Michael Harris]

I am in the Navy, working in cyrptology

I too was in the Navy but I worked in CRYPTOLOGY . I do agree, destroying hard drives was fun but even more fun was destroying old monochrome monitors because there may be classifed info burned into the crt. Snip off the back of the tube to break the vacuum seal and then whack with a sledge hammer. Your tax dollars at work.

But I stand by my opinion that a properly overwritten hard drive will protect the old info from most normal recovery techniques. Again it really depends on how sensitive you think your personal info is. Of course the intelligence community is going to take the most extreme measures.

 

[Glenn Overholt]

I have to agree with Michael on this. You could just get entire directories and copy them over, and just keep on doing it until the drive is full, and even move a few files over to fill it up completely, and then wipe it. Maybe 1 repeat, but I would think it would have to be gone by then.

Glenn

 

[Ken Chan]

Copying arbitrary files/directories over only works if the files fit exactly into the clusters. For example, on old FAT drives, the clusters could be 16KB, and you'd want to copy files that are exact multiples of that size. Otherwise you end up with slack space at the ends of the clusters, which could either be not overwritten, or contain who-knows-what from main memory. If you're going to do that, you might as well just use one of the disk wiping programs mentioned earlier, especially if they are free.

//Ken

 

[Glenn Overholt]

Ok, I see that. It would be better to copy over huge files, so they would fill the clusters up, and on the second pass, put a smaller file in first to 'upset' the location of the rest.

I can see where rewriting everything six or eight times would surely clear it up, but what are the chances that the drive would end up in the hands of someone that would be willing to search out what was on there before, and having the 'right' information being found?

Glenn

 

[Ken Chan]

I still say it's easier to use a free disk wiping program once, which is guaranteed to get everything

//Ken

 

[Greg*go]

Just turn it off via the power button. I thought that turned everything off.


Or try doing a 50-page term paper, that's usually pretty effective in destroying the computer. If memory serves, it should erase everything right around page 48 or so.

 

[ToddS]

Wow some CT's out there. I am an ex DP but I worked at the unnameable place with the likes of you and destroying hard drives was a perk. The magnets inside are alot of fun.

 

[Ted Lee]

there is only one tool you need:



it's the only way to be sure...

 

[John_Berger]

I still say it's easier to use a free disk wiping program once, which is guaranteed to get everything

I am totally astonished by how many people act like using a disk wiping program is as secure as crumpling up a piece of paper before you throw it out!

People! These programs don't just erase the FAT or partition information! They go through and write 1s and 0s throughout every sector of the disk regardless of what operating system is on it! It's no different than any other magnetic media! When you record over a TV show on your VCR, can you still see the previous image? I know I can't! Do that four or five times and you're just about guaranteed to not get any inclination of what the original recording was!

If you're concerned, use any of the disk wiping programs.

If you're super-über-paranoid, then, fine, drill it. But if it's going to be donated, whoever gets it will need a hard drive. You won't be doing them any favors by drilling it.

I can't imagine for one picosecond that anyone out there will put more time into looking at personal hard drives than hooking it up and trying to do a DIR, which will be obliterated (and impossible) with a wiping utility!

Just wipe it a few times with one of the utilities then maybe reinstall an old version of 95 on it or something. (Spare me the licensing issues, boys.) No one will be able to get to any of your previous data, yet some unfortunate soul that currently could use a computer might be able to finally get that computer, which he wouldn't be able to do if you drill the drive and toss the PC in the trash.