Why would someone walk the extra mile and erase files that already have been deleted in Windows? The answer to that question is simple: Windows does not really delete the file, it only deletes the reference to the file which tells the system where files are located on the hard drive. It’s like loosing the address of a friend’s house. You could not point your finger on it on a map but it is still existing and calling the friend would reveal its location again.

Files can be recovered if they have not been erased properly. The age of a file plays a role in determining the chances of success. A rule of thumb is that new files have a higher chance to be recovered than files that have been deleted a while ago.

Prevent Restore was designed with ease of use in mind. The user picks a partition that he wants to erase files from, selects the type of data that should replace the deleted files and the program does all the hard work in the background. It uses several security algorithms to overwrite the deleted data on the hard drive ensuring that the data cannot be recovered with recovery software.

So how does it compare to Eraser? The user interface of Prevent Restore is not providing many options to choose from. This is less confusing but advanced computer users might miss features that Eraser offers. Eraser on the other hand comes with options that Prevent Restore does not offer. This includes the selection of the data algorithm to erase files or a scheduler that performs the operation regularly.

Eraser can also erase existing files and folders securely and it does support all Microsoft Windows operating systems from Windows 95 on while Prevent Restore is only compatible to Windows XP and Windows Vista.

Advanced users will most likely stick with Eraser while beginners might tend to work with Prevent Restore to erase files on their system.

The website answers some frequently asked questions on their website. Breaking a CD would for instance have the same effect but would not make it recyclable anymore. Microwaving CDs would be bad for the microwave due to metal arcing and toxic fumes. Scratching CDs with sharp objects like knifes could have the same effect but is more time consuming and not that data secure.

I’m still not really convinced if the method is really destroying all data on the disks. It does not cost much and would be worth a try but how am I supposed to find out if the CDs and DVDs can’t be read by experts ? What do you normally use for this purpose ?

found: fosfor