From Leo's mailbag:
> From: A Computer User
> Sent: February 28, 2006
> To: Ask Leo!
> Subject: Could my old data be recovered after a format?
>
> Leo,
> --------------
> About three years ago i gave my old pc to a freind of the
> family, and before doing so i formatted the hard drive (i
> think i probably formatted it a few times)
>
> I thought that in doing this my privicy was being kept pretty
> safe, however the other day i downloaded a free programme off
> of the net, used to recover files - this worked on the hard
> drive of my new computer which i have just formatted!
>
> Needless to say i was pretty shocked to learn this. How
> likely is it that the friend of my family could use a free
> programme like this and find my old files from three years
> ago? Does the answer to this question depend on how much of
> the hard drive has been overwritten?
Prety much, yes. How much, and how many times it's been
overwritten.
More than anything else it depends on the technical expertise
of your friend, and his motivation.
In the typical case, formatting is enough to thwart most,
but a truly dedicated snoop could go to great lengths to
recover data. That's why, ultimately, I recommend a drill
press for destroying hard disks you no longer need. More
here:
http://ask-leo.com/how_should_i_erase_my_hard_drive_before_i_give_it_away.html
Thanks for asking,
Leo
Article 1132
| Category:
Hardware
