10 Ways to Completely Destroy Data on a Hard Drive. 

Starting in Reverse Order First I will Give you My Top Ten Ways of How to Destroy the Data on Your Hard Drive. 

You May ask why I should do this?   

You may be a very green type of person and want to hand your Old P.C. /Lap top/Net Book/ Etc… in for Re-Cycling.
You may want to trade “Your Tech” in for newer model’s (I would strongly recommend always removing the drive before taking a machine to the store) or you may want to just take it to the tip. Before you do any of this just please remember that to start with Information is Knowledge and Knowledge in The Wrong Hands can be very Dangerous and Costly to you and your Family. Especially if you run a business or Value your Privacy! 

 This was one of the reasons as to why the Data Protection act is in place to help you protect your Identity www.ico.gov.uk

Quite a lot of Data is stored on your Hard Drive and by just hitting the delete key and sending a file to the Re-Cycle Bin does not get rid of the Data. If fact! Have you ever emptied the Re-Cycle bin on your P.C. or Mac? Well just doing this does not fully get rid of it either. Because there are many IT People (and you don’t need to be a genius) who can recover the information. Just ask your local I.T. Man the next time you accidentally lose (delete) a file. I can guarantee he can recover it in a matter of hours if not minutes.

 So Starting from Number 10 here we go.
But before we do some of these Two Things I strongly recommend.
1) Make Sure all your DATA is Backed up so you can recover it. I would Recommend using the Service offered by www.247uptime.co.uk
2) That you do not try some of these indoors and especially near your kids or animals.

10. Wipe Your Hard Drive. to Erase the Data.
This is an easy one and very common practice especially if you want to then remove the drive and use it as a standalone separate back up unit. However sometimes Information can be recovered even with the best programs designed to do this. According to the Website “CNET” the best free one out there at the moment is Darik’s Boot and Nuke (DBAN), 

9. Use a Strong Magnet to Degauss the Drive.
This can work but who can easily get hold of a magnet that strong to completely fry the Information. 

The next few ways are better and but tend to be a bit on the dangerous side and are not for the fool hardy! 

8.   Use Acid. to melt the plates and components.
Several Web sites suggest soaking the drive in diluted hydrochloric or muriatic acid. This might work, but you run the risk of burning yourself or breathing toxic fumes one to be used outdoors and not near kids or pets. Personally there are far easier ways. 

7. Put Your Hard Drive in a Fire. Burn it.
UG Man Fire!! Fire’s these are great for bonfire night or cooking with But there are lots of toxic chemicals released from that gadget when it comes in contact with heat source. So do you really want to be breathing the toxic fumes in or releasing them into the environment? 

6. Put it in a Microwave Oven!  and Nuke it
Might sound Crazy but some people do this. It’s not recommended unless you have an old Microwave and want to see Fireworks. You also have to have it on for a long time to really get to the “platters” and blister them. 

These next Four are ones that use Plain and Simple “BFI” “Brute Force and Ignorance” UG… 

5.  Crush Them.
 Yep that’s right plain and simple. Take them to your local scrap yard and put them in the Car Crusher. 

4. Split the Hard Drive Down then Sand the Discs inside.
This one takes a while however there are detailed plans on the internet on how to do it. It does however have the advantage of exposing the “platters” so you can guarantee they are unreadable. 

3.  Drill Holes in It.  “Break out the Power Tools”
This One is for those who love their “tool time” It’s fun it gets the Job done but it takes time. 

2. Use a Hammer on it. “Just Bash It”
For all those wanting to vent some frustration and do what comes naturally when things don’t quite work there is nothing more satisfying the getting a BIG HAMMER OUT and Bashing the living daylights out of an inanimate object. 

Last But Not Least or Should I Say Number One on the This Top Ten. 

1. Get Your Old Hard Drive Shredded.
As I mentioned at the top of this article Information is Knowledge and Knowledge in The Wrong Hands can be very Dangerous and Costly to you and your Family. Especially if you run a business or Value your Privacy! So the only way to really guarantee that the Data is truly destroyed is to get the Hard Drive Shredded. Because after it has gone through the Shredder there is “No Way” you can recover anything from a “Pile of Dust”. There are many companies out there that does this Mini Shred included who will not only shred your Hard Drive but also, We will provide you with a “Certificate of Destruction”. Which can prove very important for your business, if you get asked question’s in relation to the DATA Protection Act. 

For More information as to how Hard Drives are Shredded and the Cost’s call or Email Martin at Mini Shred. Contact Details on the Contact’s Page. 

ICO finds Lancashire County Council to be in breach of the Data Protection Act after sensitive files were found in a filing cabinet – SC Magazine UK

To read the Full Report Click on the News Link (below) to be taken to SC Magazine UK  However in a month where the powers of the Information commissioner have been increased there are still large bodies out there who are not keeping your information intact. Read on
ICO finds Lancashire County Council to be in breach of the Data Protection Act after sensitive files were found in a filing cabinet – SC Magazine UK.

Is Your Company at Risk

Thats correct your company could be at risk of a £500,000 fine if your

Is the security of all your confidential documents a dull topic and is it- something you’ve been putting off until tomorrow?  Well, tomorrow has arrived because the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) now has powers to fine companies £500,000 if they are careless about securing personal data of individuals – whether that’s staff or customers.

For many companies, our data IS our business.  But remember it’s not just your confidential data that can be lost or stolen – it’s that of your most valued customers and staff.

Mini Shred provide a bespoke secure of site tailored solution to the ever increasing headache of how to dispose of your confidential waste.

With a fully traceable Shredding Service that Starts from only £10.
Mini Shred provide a Quality Tailored Service to match the Needs of all SME’s

So you choose between paying your staff to shred instead of growing your company and at the same time still risk a fine up to £500,000 because you may not have a fully auditable System.

And you Still have to deal with the Dust, the Noise of your Staff Shredding during that important phone call and please don’t let us forget you still have to Dispose of the Paper once it has been Shredded.

Contact: Mini Shred to Discuss a possible solution to this Risk! 

Hello world!

Welcome to the New Mini Blogs fro Mini Shred
We’ve Just started doing these again so please bear with us.
I would like to take this opportunity to welcome onboard.
Your Office Manager on Stockport.
Suttons IFA’s in Sale Moor
Jones Gough LLP Solicitors in Hazel Grove.
All have opted to use one of the Secure  Lockers provided by Mini Shred to help with the control of their waste paper.

How Costly Can Free Be

Guys how costly can Free be?

I am sure when we are networking we come across people who have just started out in business and they have been on the web and seen get free business cards from Vista Print and if we look in our card folders then you will probably find a few.

Well please contact them and tell them to check their bank account for a small monthly amount of £11.95 being taken from the account, and while doing this refer them to Eric who can offer a cheaper alternative.

You may ask why I am putting this out to you however and you may want to pass this on to your friends I have just been checking my Bank Account and noticed this Debit of said £11.95 a month being taken out by a VPREWARDS.com

This occurred after I had some quick and cheap cards done by Vista Print for a small project for free (must say this was before I new Eric or Roy).

You get your cards and then you get an email inviting you to take advantage of the free for a 30day trial of a discount club called VPREWARDS.com. You click on the email and have a look at it to do so you have to register your email with them (your card details are already stored after paying for the P&P for the free Business Cards). By doing so you are then automatically placed on their system and if (like me did not receive the email if forming you about cancelling the £11.95 will be taken out of your account every month.

After Speaking to my bank (who have had across this problem before). They advised me to contact the above to cancel the account that I was unwittingly being charged for. I have also after about an hour on the phone got most of the payments taken from my account back

So the moral of this is
1) Check your account regularly and question every transaction you do not recognise. (Internet banking makes this easier)

2) Don’t use Vista Print as FREE is NOT FREE.

3) Finally Eric works out a lot better in both Quality and Price when you add up the total VPREWARDS.

Regards
Martin trying to look after you all.

P.S.
Yes even the best of us gets caught out once in a while. BUYER BEWARE.