Reformatting the hard drive and reinstalling the operating system (OS) can be a safe option. Obviously, you cannot completely wipe a hard drive while you boot the operating system with it. You will need some floppy boot disk or CD to install the operating system, or nowadays, even some bootable USB sticks are available. So, primarily, what you need to do is overwrite the data. This is the simplest way to keep people away from your old files. However, there is a rider even here. There are specialized software available to reclaim the data even after re-installation of the OS. Going further, there are various software applications available, which help in disk wiping. They overwrite the data with zeros and ones alongside overwriting the free space as well, with several passes. Software like Darik's Boot And Nuke (DBAN) and KillDisk are free and efficiently wipe off all the data with the process of overwriting. Even if you search in Google for such software, you will get plenty of free ones. You should run these software at least thrice for effective cleaning through overwriting.
If you are someone from the business world, then hard drive cleaning has assumed a new significance for you, given the new government regulations in place. If you fail to erase the customer or clients' information, it can result in lawsuits and hefty fines. To avoid going that path, you should use extremely reliable disk cleaning software, which you have to purchase, like WipeDrive 5.0, having support for all PC and Mac computers. It permanently wipes all hard drive information including formats and partitions, and also wipes all the external hard drives, thumb drives, memory cards and iPods. The improved WipeDrive 5.0 Pro version and provides the benefits of simultaneous wiping of up to 12 hard drives, and saves you the effort of reinstalling the operating system. Overall, DBAN and WipeDrive are the most widely used hard drive cleaning software.
Also, degaussing is a technique used for destructing the data, subjecting the hard drive to a strong magnetic field. But this can permanently damage your hard drive. Of course, if you are very apprehensive of the data in the drive and want to take zero risk, a hammer is the way to go for complete destruction.
Before proceeding to wipe your hard drive, make sure you do not want any of the information for future use. If at all anything is needed, backup that data on an external hard drive or CD. Also, if you are going to clean the computer hard drive and start over again, make sure you have the installation CDs of your anti-virus, printer or any other important application. Nowadays, hard drives have become as personal as our own toothbrush (pun intended). So, it is absolutely vital that nobody gets access to our personal data as it can be embarrassing or simply cause huge monetary loss afterward. Without a doubt, a purchased drive c
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