Deleting A File Doesn't Mean It's Deleted Forever So How Do You Securely Erase Data From A Computer?

by: Sam Miller

It is a common misconception of PC users that once they have dropped a file into the recycle bin and emptied it that that is it, the file is gone for good.

Wrong!

All that happens when you erase a file by either deleting it or putting it into the trash, is that Windows has been told not to recognize the file so you do not see it when you open a folder or your desktop. In fact, it is not erased at all, the data is still there on your hard drive and it will remain there until the information is over written by some other file or data. Knowing where to look will also lead a snooper to those places in the Windows operating system that a casual user would not normally know about or think to look such as temporary documents or temporary internet files and the cache.

The issue is how do we get rid of files and information that allows you to have a degree of confidence and security that the data has been erased forever?

This becomes particularly acute when you are looking at recycling or trashing an old computer as many people are currently doing with the Windows Vista upgrading that is happening at the moment. Handing over a PC to the local school, charity or selling it on becomes fraught if you have data lurking their that can easily be recovered by a free file recovery program downloaded from the hundreds freely available on the internet. Imagine your credit card information, banking passwords or personal information such as family photographs being recovered in a matter of seconds from your machine?

Your first stop is the internet and simply putting file recovery freeware as a search string in your search engine will throw up a lot of utilities that you can feely use. PCInspector is a good example but there are many more, and here is an overview of the features you can expect. PCInspector will recover deleted files of a wide variety and not just Windows files such as Word, PowerPoint or Excel. You can recover html, xhtml, gif, avi, mp3 files and many more.

Moving onto the commercially available software, Stompsoft have a good range of file recovery software as well as an extremely good file erase package that has been certified to meet the US Department of Defense sanitation standard for data erasure. Typically, the commercial software tends to retail at around the $20-$30 mark but if you are serious about your PC security this is a small price to pay. Commercial software does tend to offer more features than freeware and to be frank, the support you get with commercial software does tend to make the price worthwhile as in many cases you will be looking to use a file delete utility prior to ridding yourself of the PC. Once the machine has gone you are not going to get the chance to go back and repeat a file erase utility in this instance so you need to get it right the first time.

About the Author:

If you are interested in learning more about wipe pc as a privacy tool, check Sam Miller new web-site.

No Comment | Posted in » erase, file, freeware, recovery    

The High Price Of Things That Are Free

by Webhosting Reviews

This is particularly true with the case of unwanted adware and spyware that some of us unknowingly download and infect our systems with. Adware and spyware are programs that are unwittingly installed into our computers because they come bundled with some freeware and shareware programs that are downloadable from the Internet. Computer and Internet users are usually careful about installing suspicious programs that may contain viruses and worms that can disrupt the computer's system.

This is why spyware and adware use deception to get individuals to downloading them either because they are intricately bundled into legitimate parent programs and sometimes, spyware and adware can even masquerade itself as security or computer optimization software to trick one into installing these unwanted programs http://www.stocks8.com

However, in some cases, one doesn't even have to install anything to get the computer system infected with spyware and adware. Simply browsing and visiting certain sites can launch an attack. These adware and spyware programs can be launched due to vulnerabilities in your Internet browser's security. This way, spyware and adware can automatically infect your system without you having to download anything. This is especially true of earlier versions of Internet Explorer because it is intricately connected to the Windows operating system.

For this reason, it is important to free yourself from security and privacy risks by equipping yourself with adequate spyware and adware protection.Spyware and adware at the very least can cause you annoyance from unwanted pop up advertisements that can erratically appear on your computer monitor. In moderate instances though, your privacy can be greatly compromised since spyware can track your Internet habits. However, severe cases can mean a serious attack on your security against identity theft and fraud.

While you indeed should be wary of free programs, there are some free spyware and adware protection programs that you can use manage your Internet risks properly. There's Ad-Aware SE Personal, Spybot S&D, IE-SPYAD, Spyware Blaster, HiJack This, XP-AntiSpy, and X-Cleaner are some of the more popular free spyware and adware protection programs. Before trying out some other free spyware and adware protection program though, you should make sure of its legitimacy.

There are rogue spyware or malware that are disguised as security software. Before trying these out, you should do your research and ask around for recommendations. Dependable and secure free spyware and adware protection programs however are vital protection needed in every computer. These free spyware and adware programs work in two ways. The first is by providing real time protection by proactively preventing new spyware and adware from infecting your system.

The other type of protection provided by free spyware and adware programs is the detection and eradication of existing spyware and adware that is already installed in your computer. Not all free spyware and adware protection programs are created equal. Some of the free spyware and adware protection programs mentioned above can only do one type or protection and some can do both. It is better to get a free spyware and adware protection program that can do both for better value and risk management.

No Comment | Posted in » adware, freeware, malware, protection program, spyware