gHacks technology news » erase data http://www.ghacks.net A technology blog covering software, mobile phones, gadgets, security, the Internet and other relevant areas. Tue, 24 Nov 2009 11:05:00 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 en hourly 1 SSD Security: Erase Solid State Drives Data http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/08/ssd-security-erase-solid-state-drives-data/ http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/08/ssd-security-erase-solid-state-drives-data/#comments Wed, 08 Apr 2009 18:03:57 +0000 Martin http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/08/ssd-security-erase-solid-state-drives-data/ ssd securityWhile it is still not common sense to securely erase data on hard drives (read: Securely Erase Files) before computers or hard drives are sold or given away the matter becomes even more complicated where SSD – Solid State Drives – are concerned. The positive aspect of Solid State Drives is that data cannot be recovered if it is overwritten on the drive which means that only one pass would be needed to erase the data on the SSD. The bad news however is that not the operating system but the controller is specifying where the data is written on the SSD.

This in effect means that all methods of overwriting free space are not sufficient for erasing the data securely on those drives. This also means as well that it is not possible to erase specific files securely on the SSD. Users who want to delete data securely on SSDs have therefor the following options at hand:

  • Encryption
  • Format
  • Filling the Drive

Encryption is surely the best method of ensuring that the data on a SSD is secure as it cannot be accessed without decryption. Formatting the drive on the other hand is only reasonable if no data on that drive is needed anymore. It would otherwise require extensive backup and restoration procedures. Filling the drive with data might work as well as it would overwrite anything on the drive as well.

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]]> http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/08/ssd-security-erase-solid-state-drives-data/feed/ 0 Erase Data On CD Or DVD Permanently http://www.ghacks.net/2008/09/18/erase-data-on-cd-or-dvd-permanently/ http://www.ghacks.net/2008/09/18/erase-data-on-cd-or-dvd-permanently/#comments Thu, 18 Sep 2008 06:01:48 +0000 Martin http://www.ghacks.net/?p=7058 Data CDs and DVDs that are no longer needed pose a few problems. Throwing them away could be a privacy risk because everyone who finds them could simply read them and discover what data has been stored on the disks. Destroying them by cutting, scratching or breaking on the other hand might release chemicals to the environment.

Lite-On developed the Smart Erase technique to give users a reliable way of erasing the data on CDs and DVDs without damaging the disk. To make it clearer, the technique is compatible to all CD-R and DVD-R disks, not only their rewritable counterparts.

Smart Erase overwrites the data contained on the disk with random characters much like the tools that can erase files or the free space of a hard drive so that the data is not recoverable afterwards. Nero 7 Essentials which ships with the retail versions of each DVD writer will have that feature build in which can be used in combination with one of the announced Lite-On DVD writers.

The first DVD writers are expected to hit shelves in September and October:

  • iHAP322 is a 22X DVD writer with PATA connection
  • iHAP422 is a 22X DVD writer with PATA connection and LightScribe
  • iHAS322 is a 22X DVD writer with SATA connection
  • iHAS422 is a 22X DVD writer with SATA connection and LightScribe

The new technique supports two modes: Quick Erase will only erase data in the lead in track and the first track of the CD / DVD while Full Erase will erase the full disk.

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