Hidden Insecurities?

[JoelTaylor]

I use Eraser to securely delete files, and Data Doctor to erase my free space (because it seems to go so, so much faster. Any reason for this?)

Anyway, I was thinking, if before I used eraser I accidentally deleted a sensitive file (call it file A) just normally, without erasing it. So, it's still on my hard drive if someone runs a recovery program or forensically looks at it or whatever it is we're worried people might do here.

Then I download a movie, file B, and file B is written on the hard drive OVER file A. File A is still there, isn't it, to in-depth recovery? And because file B is covering it up, if I run a free-space erase, it wont be wiped will it?




Any solution to this other than, yanno, taking EVERYTHING off my hard drive, completely 100% wiping it, reinstalling the operating system and only putting back on it the files I want to be there?

Joel T

 

[Joel]

As of now, the best information known is that so long a file is overwritten once it cannot be recovered with presently available technology. This is assuming you are using a modern drive using perpendicular recording. There's really no need to do yet another free space erase; having said that, files are almost never written over in the manner you have described.

Data Doctor may be erasing faster as they may not be clearing cluster tips of your files; this is known to result in a large speed up especially on drives with large number of files.

Joel