Destroying HDD data

[419]

Does anyone know of a way to destroy data held on a laptop HDD, without using a wiping / shredding program, and without physically destroying the HDD.

The drive in my laptop is knackered, and it is being replaced under guarantee. I have to return the laptop, complete with the drive fitted, but as I can't get the computer to boot up (HDD totally knackered, making grinding noises), I can't run any program to wipe it.

I was wondering if I remove it, would subjecting it to a very large alternating magnetic field do enough scrambling to make it unreadable.
There isn't anything too worrying on the disc, but there are internet passwords, but there may also be some internet banking details.

[bnt]

If you're going to be wiping it totally, you can't be running off it at the time - so one thing you can do is to get one of those Linux "Live CDs", boot off that, and wipe if from there.

Someone made a Live CD specifically for this purpose: Darik's Boot & Nuke (http://dban.sourceforge.net/). It can even run off a USB Key or a floppy disk, and does what it says on the tin. :E

edit: just re-read the original post: some drive failures are related to temperature, so the drive may be wipe-able if it's given time to cool down or put in a fridge for a bit. However, if the drive is really knackered, then no program is going to work on it, so... know anyone with some neodymium magnets, or a MRI machine?

[twiggs]

Might be easier to use this as an opportunity to change all your passwords.
Chances are that if your hard disk is sufficiently spoiled, access to all surface areas of the disk might not be possible (by you) and hence some data will be potentially recoverable (by someone with appropriate equipment), even after a run with Dariks utility.

[Saab Dastard]

It does depend how much it is worth to you. You could simply buy a replacement 2nd hand drive for 20 quid on ebay and send that, while whacking your own with a hammer.

You could also try opening the disk up and having a "look" at the platters :E

But this might count against you in the guarantee stakes :(

Have you contacted the vendor about this situation? Explain to them that you can send the disk back, but only after knackering it properly.

SD

[under_exposed]

The best place to find nice powerful magnets is inside a disk drive so I do not think you will have much luck that way!
If it is making that much noise then it will not be easy to recover the data without expense so it is unlikly the manufacturers will try.

[planecrazy.eu]

Some manufactures document that they offer full data destruction on failed and returned hdd's to DOD standard.

Think i read it on HP's website, or Dells, i cant remember.

They did an article in Sound on Sound about recovering data from HDD's, they sledge hammered the drive, but using some type of scanning microscope or something they recovered 60% of the data.

Took ages, many bits of expensive kit, but shows they can get it back, if they really want to.

[Tarq57]

I would estimate that treating the disk thoroughly with a blowtorch, heat stripping gun, or oxy-acetylene torch would make any data totally unrecoverable.
'Course, that may possibly void the warranty.

[Alvision]

You could try the freezer trick. Pop the HDD in a freezer bag in the freezer for about an hour, then connect it upto to another machine and try using a zero fill utility.

[rob-d]

The only way you can make sure a drives data is definitely unrecoverable is to physically destroy it.

If that isn't an option, then maybe take it to a scrap yard near you with a high power electromagnet and give them a fiver to give your disk a blast of that for a minute or 2.

[419]

Thanks for all the info.
I gave up trying to delete the data, and took the easier option (as suggested), of changing all my passwords.

One final question.
The laptop is now in the hands of the repair agent, and they've confirmed that the HDD is buggered and will be replaced under warranty.

They have asked me if I wish to upgrade the replacement unit. I would have to pay the difference (about £30) between the original fitted item, and the higher spec unit, and was wondering if I would notice much (any) difference.

The original HDD is 200GB, 4200rpm, with a 8Mb cache

The upgrade is 200GB, 7200rpm 16Mb cache. The data transfer figure is about 40% faster.


I mainly use the laptop for photo editing, word processing, and watching DVD's.

[Tarq57]

You will definitely notice the improvement, especially if doing applications with a lot of read/write action. I'd do it, if the 30 pounds isn't an issue.

[419]

Thanks for that. I think I'll go for it then.

The £30 isn't a problem. (what's £30 nowadays. It costs me twice that to fill a small car with petrol).

[IO540]

You could try the freezer trick. Pop the HDD in a freezer bag in the freezer for about an hour, then connect it upto to another machine and try using a zero fill utility.Not sure what that would do??

The freezer trick is often used to "recover" a duff hard drive, for just long enough to get the data off it. This can work because many electronic failures are temperature sensitive, and cooling causes things to shrink (as most men will know) so if there is e.g. a bad solder joint the cooling will bring it together.

To answer the original Q, if you delete everything you can off the HD, and then write a number of huge files to it, enough to fill it right up, that should do it.

But - assuming you are leaving Windoze running - there are still loads of places where embarrassing stuff could be left. One electrician working at my house a while ago asked me how one can get rid of the file search history menu - he didn't want his wife to see the filenames he was searching for ;) It turned out to be stored somewhere in the registry.....

Must delete the windoze swapfile of course.

If you are prepared to delete Windoze and just have the laptop booting into say ms-dos 6.2 then it's easy to clean the HD. But then you may as well use Killdisk or something like that.

[Alvision]

If you read his post fully it says the drive is knackered. So to wipe the stuff off it he has to some how resurrect it.

To answer the original Q, if you delete everything you can off the HD, and then write a number of huge files to it, enough to fill it right up, that should do it.

Thats what I said above with the zero fill utility

[Bushfiva]

If the drive mustn't look mechanically mangled, find the little air breather hole and inject a random amount of random adhesive in it.

[effortless]

I have a huge magnet from a speaker. I take out all my dead drives and laeve them in a box together. You would have to hire someone like Vogon (http://www.vogon-international.com/) to recover from that and it would cost thousands.

[Mac the Knife]

This is getting silly.

For the average person any security wipe utility that conforms to DOD 5220.22-M standard such as EraserDisk - http://www.micro2000uk.co.uk/products/eraserdisk/features.htm - is enough.

The idea that someone who picks up a tossed hard drive from the dustbin put out by No 10, The Elms and finds it properly security wiped is going to go to the time, trouble and very considerable expense of dismantling it and searching the platters for half a dozen random bytes that might or might not be you PIN code or your pr0n collection is risible.

Far cheaper and easier to break in and pinch your plasma TV, your bank records or for that matter the entire PC. Far easier and cheaper to hire a pro hacker to craft a handmade exploit to root your system and download the lot!

Scraping dubious data off wiped hard drives is only viable if you have a majorly urgent need for national security or commercial advantage, lots of time and lots of money. Even then it recovers only scraps which need other intel to be useful.

Get a grip folks!

Mac

[Bushfiva]

This is getting silly.

Yes, but you say

any security wipe utility that conforms to DOD 5220.22-M standard such as EraserDisk ... is enough.

and the original poster says

Does anyone know of a way to destroy data held on a laptop HDD, without using a wiping / shredding program

'cos presumably the drive won't spin up. :}

[Mac the Knife]

Bushfiva, I stand corrected! You're quite right.

To avail visible damage I'd suggest a few 30sec trips to the microwave or a few good passes with a neodymium magnet or a tape head demagnetiser.

Mac

[Shunter]

Does anyone know of a way to destroy data held on a laptop HDD, without using a wiping / shredding program?

2 choices. Hammer, or large electromagnet. We use the latter for mass-wiping of hard discs and tapes.