How to safely destroy data on old devices

Buying a new computer or smart phone can be a fun, or very frustrating depending how well the process goes.  New device however, will be much faster which in turn will make you more productive. But what do you do with the old computer/laptop of smart phone?  You could sell it, give it to family or friends, donate it or to recycle it.

What about the old data that remains on the device?  Before you dispose of your old PC or smartphone, make sure to remove any sensitive data on it. The simple process of deleting files isn’t enough, files can be easily recovered using data recovery software. Here are some options:

1. Restore the device to factory settings – Easy

Make sure to backup all your important documents & files first. Just about every computer & smartphone these days has the option to restore to factory settings (Follow the manufacturers instructions on how to do that, each one is a little different). Restoring to factory settings will wipe all the data on your device, reformat the hard drive and reinstall the operating system (Windows & Mac).

2. Format the hard drive and reinstall the operating system – harder

Formatting the hard drive will wipe all of the data and the operating system from the hard drive and allow you to install a new copy of the operating system.  This will also allow you to upgrade the operating system, assuming you have the correct disk and the license to do so.  Reinstalling Microsoft Windows from disk will usually install a clean copy of windows, without the factory built-in bloatware that computers usually come with.

3. Use software to erase sensitive data. Most secure way to destroy sensitive data.

If you absolutely want to destroy any shred of documents from the hard drive, the most secure way is to use data destruction software. The data destruction software will erase any files on the hard drive securely, then overwrite the hard drive with random ones and zeros several times. This process ensures that there is no possible way to recover any files.  If it worked for the unnamed presidential candidate, it will work for you.

4. Physical destruction

Physical destruction is a sure fire way to destroy the data on the hard drive. If you have several hard drives laying around from old computers, physical destruction might be the easiest & fastest way to destroy data on the hard drives.  There are services out there that will shred your old hard drives, optionally you can try to destroy them yourself.  Drilling holes in the platters will render them useful.