Mac OS X hard drive scrubber?

Question

I am going to start a web business and hire some developers eventually, but I am planning ahead and trying to figure out all the software/hardware they'll need. One thing that I have noticed is its extremely important to secure the deletion of files - especially since they will be using laptops (which can be stolen).

I have used hard drive scrubbers before to prepare to sell a PC on ebay, but our company will be Mac based. What are the best and most trusted for Macs?

Any additional information on business security are appreciated too.

Answer 1

You have several options, depending on the scope of destruction you wish to achieve, all of which are built-in to the Mac OS.

1) If you want to permanently encrypt a folder (say, the user's home directory), you can use the File Vault utility. That way if the computer falls into the wrong hands, the data in that folder (and all sub-folders) will be unusable. (http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/filevault/).

2) If you have some documents you want to securely delete, put them in the trash can, then from the Finder menu choose Secure Empty Trash.

3) If you want to completely zero out an entire volume, you can use the Disk Utility (you'll need to run it after booting from the install CD if the target is the startup volume). Choose the erase disk function and select the "zero all data" option.

Oh, and no disrespect intended, but the claim that "thieves can eventually recover your data, no matter what mechanism you use to delete it" is just wrong. A zero bit is a zero bit, with no history of having lived a previous life as a one (or another zero, for that matter). If all the bits are zeros, then there is no information on the drive, period.

Answer 2

Drive Scrubber

Answer 3

Drives use magnetic "images" to represent digital data. To "extract" data from an erased drive, one uses an electron microscope to examine the magnetic patterns in an attempt to identify useful information. It is true that when a file is overwritten by a typical file after the original file has been "deleted", it is not difficult to recover the original file data. It is a different matter to recover data after every sector of a drive has been overwritten by random data.

Although some "experts" claim that forensic examiners can identify data on a drive that has had all of its sectors overwitten, these experts cannot cite an agency that makes this claim. In a response to a popular published paper citing such a claim, the National bureau of Economic Research indicates that one pass of random data writen over all sectors of a hard drive should make it unreadable by the best experts using the best electron microscopes of today.

The data on a drive is not in layers like ink on paper when it is overwritten. It is just one mass of magnetic image mixed with another. It is impossible to determine which part of the image is older. Generally, a single pass of random overwrite should make the data unrecoverable but most software used for this objective applies several passes.

The Disk Utility with Mac Os X version 10.4 can apply 7 or 35 passes of random data. This is sufficient for the foreseeable future of data security. But it does nothing for a stolen laptop.

Some companies, such as Absolute Software, offer a service of automatic contact by Internet that puts them in a network link with the computer. If the laptop is stolen, the owner can notify the company and request data destruction. The next time the laptop connects to the Internet, it polls the company and the company responds with "Hasta luego, Baby."

Answer 4

Hard Drive Scrubber

Answer 5

To answer your question, You really need an encryption program to secure your files. A really good open source app is truecrypt.http://www.truecrypt.org/

This method of securing your files optimal and really secure.

Now if you are trying to format the drives, then a standard format will suffice for the most part. Unless you really have highly sensitive data, then you should destroy the HDD's.

Really, if anyone wants to recover data from a HDD and has the know-how and the proper tools, they are going to get the data off the HDD. No matter what program you use to delete or format the drive.

Good luck!

cheers!