ThinkPad finally shipped...

[Paul Hovnanian P.E.]

Simple tools can still recover data. Jim is worried about the computer
getting into the hands of someone who has these tools. Heck, a ten
years ago my work colleague wrote up a low-level disk reader in an
evening so we could recover some data off a buggered drive. The new
tools make this really easy. You need to scrub the free space after
reloading the OS.

Correct. A new system installation probably won't reach sectors
containing old data that lie beyond the old system's footprint. That
data will still be readable.

Others have suggested writing one big file until the disk is full and
then deleting it. That'll probably do the job. The best will still be a
utility that does a write to every sector.

 

[Chris Jones]

I just got a notice that my ThinkPad has finally shipped.

I promised my old Sony Vaio to a granddaughter.

What is recommended to scrub it of client files and PSpice?

I wouldn't want proprietary information to fall into the wrong hands
if she lost it.

...Jim Thompson

There are plenty of bootable CDs (e.g. probably "Ultimate Boot CD" with
utilities that will wipe everything well enough that the drive itself would
be unable to read any data from the disk, and any other method that
possibly might get some data from the disk would be very costly indeed.

You will then have to re-install the OS and software.

Any method that does not involve wiping the OS is in my opinion more risky
because it would rely on knowing where the OS does / does not store user
data, which I think would be very hard to know with confidence.

Chris

 

[Paul Hovnanian P.E.]

[snip]

How about test Vista and give us a report? >:->

Someone else suggested writing gibberish to the disk. I suppose Vista
qualifies. ;-)

 

[Chris Jones]

Simple tools can still recover data. Jim is worried about the computer
getting into the hands of someone who has these tools. Heck, a ten
years ago my work colleague wrote up a low-level disk reader in an
evening so we could recover some data off a buggered drive. The new
tools make this really easy. You need to scrub the free space after
reloading the OS.

Better to scrub the WHOLE disk BEFORE reinstalling the OS - this would be
more thorough and probably quicker too. It can be hard to figure out all
the weird places your data will end up - swap space, system directories,
slack space in between the end of a file and the end of the last sector of
that file, etc. etc.

Chris

 

[qrk]

Jim,
I've used BPS Data Shredder before.
http://www.bulletproofsoft.com/

To do a simple overwrite of free space will take an hour or so. It was
easy to use.

Aloha,
Mark

 

[Martin Riddle]

Only writing once is not enough for folks with really expensive tools.
However, it is probably enough for Jim's scenario.

But his clients competitors have deep pockets

 

[Jim Thompson]

Jim,
I've used BPS Data Shredder before.
http://www.bulletproofsoft.com/

To do a simple overwrite of free space will take an hour or so. It was
easy to use.

Aloha,
Mark

Thanks, Mark! I'll check it out.

...Jim Thompson

 

[legg]

There are commercial disk wipers that write all over the drive to
really lose stuff, but how many laptop thieves have sophisticated data
recovery tools?

Sophisticated laptop thieves?

RL

 

[legg]

I just got a notice that my ThinkPad has finally shipped.

I promised my old Sony Vaio to a granddaughter.

What is recommended to scrub it of client files and PSpice?

I wouldn't want proprietary information to fall into the wrong hands
if she lost it.

If you've still got an old copy of Norton Utilities, it will do that
for you.

RL

 

[JosephKK]

Vladimir Vassilevsky [email protected] posted to
alt.binaries.schematics.electronic:

I just got a notice that my ThinkPad has finally shipped.

I promised my old Sony Vaio to a granddaughter.

What is recommended to scrub it of client files and PSpice?
I wouldn't want proprietary information to fall into the wrong
hands if she lost it.

[...many trivial suggestions skipped...]

....and in the addition to deleting all relevant files and
overwriting the empty space, you have to clean up MFT(s), system
restore records and wipe out swap file(s).

After all, why do you need all that bother with relocating all of
the stuff to a new computer? I am pretty sure there will be the sw
compatibility issues also.

Why can't you just give her a new ThinkPad so everybody will be
happy?


Vladimir Vassilevsky

DSP and Mixed Signal Design Consultant

http://www.abvolt.com

There may be family complexities here, it is obviously not an issue
if Jim can afford a brand new laptop. Youth are typically rather
blase about computer security and privacy. Most professionals have
had that naivety burned out of us rather thoroughly.

 

[Tony Williams]

Thanks, Mark! I'll check it out.

CleanUp! might be worth looking at.

 

[Clint Sharp]

I just got a notice that my ThinkPad has finally shipped.

I promised my old Sony Vaio to a granddaughter.

What is recommended to scrub it of client files and PSpice?

I wouldn't want proprietary information to fall into the wrong hands
if she lost it.

...Jim Thompson

Killdisk (freeware version unless you're *really* paranoid) and then
rebuild it with the restore disks if you have them. That way she doesn't
end up with a laptop that's got a ton of useless (to her!) stuff on the
disk, in the registry, the windows directory and all over the disk
generally and anyone who steals it is unlikely to try to recover stuff
unless they targeted the machine specifically for that purpose, at which
point, if your stuff is that valuable, then you really shouldn't be
putting your granddaughter at risk by giving it to her.

 

[Jasen Betts]

I just got a notice that my ThinkPad has finally shipped.

I promised my old Sony Vaio to a granddaughter.

What is recommended to scrub it of client files and PSpice?

I wouldn't want proprietary information to fall into the wrong hands
if she lost it.

boot knoppix (or other live linux) and do

cat /dev/urandom > /dev/hda

that'll trash the hard disk contents, requiring a full reinstall of
the OS.

for a less robust solution erase the files you want to be rid of,
empty the trash, and make a text file called eraseme.bat as follows,
and run it.

copy /b eraseme.bat+eraseme.bat eraseme.too
copy /b eraseme.too+eraseme.too eraseme.bat

This will fill the space once used by the deleted data with mindless
drivel and leave you with a full hard drive and two files that need
deleting.

Bye.
Jasen

 

[Jim Thompson]

One last question....

How do I delete myself as Administrator and get rid of my password?

Everything else has been cleansed.

...Jim Thompson

 

[JosephKK]

Jim Thompson [email protected] posted
to sci.electronics.design:

One last question....

How do I delete myself as Administrator and get rid of my
password?

Everything else has been cleansed.

...Jim Thompson

The only thing possible in WinXP is to login, hand the laptop to the
recipient and tell them to change the password to their own.
The "Administrator" account is permanent, non-removable, and
special (it has more rights than any other administrator account).

 

[Clint Sharp]

One last question....

How do I delete myself as Administrator and get rid of my password?

Everything else has been cleansed.

...Jim Thompson

Create another account with administrator privileges, log in using that
account and delete your account. I assume you don't actually mean the
Administrator account but another account with administrator privileges.

 

[Jim Thompson]

Create another account with administrator privileges, log in using that
account and delete your account. I assume you don't actually mean the
Administrator account but another account with administrator privileges.

Yep. I figured it out ;-)

...Jim Thompson

 

[Clint Sharp]

Yep. I figured it out ;-)

...Jim Thompson

Hey, Jim does software too...

 

[Jim Thompson]

Hey, Jim does software too...

With difficulty. My oldest son usually sets up my PC's.

...Jim Thompson