Best way to destroy a harddrive's data in about 30 seconds?

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Pheran

Diamond Member
Apr 26, 2001
5,740
35
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Originally posted by: RedSquirrel
Who says they even use brute force? They probably have some other way like pattern recognition or something. I recall reading that they can crack any SSL data in seconds. That means your banking and other https stuff.

You can take off the tinfoil hat now, and you don't understand how encryption works. Nobody breaks high-quality encryption; it's far easier to go around it. If the FBI really wants to know what you are up to and has probable cause, they can get a warrant, break into your place and install a keylogger (or something equally nasty) on your machine. Then they get everything you are doing before encryption ever becomes a factor, not to mention all your passwords.

The countermeasure I described only addresses the specific scenario proposed by the OP, but it should be valid.
 

Red Squirrel

No Lifer
May 24, 2003
68,417
12,595
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www.anyf.ca
But what if they do find a crack in say, 10 years from now? They'll have the data. It's all crazy talk at this point, but it's best to just assume they can do it, and play it safe. ;)

Also do tin foil hats REALLY work? :p
 
Sep 6, 2008
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Originally posted by: Nocturnal
Originally posted by: moparacer
Well not so much the data but if you want to screw it big time so its not "plug and play" force the power connector in upside down with the machine turned on.

I seen someone do that once with a drive and it had a nice burnt smell to it after that and it was toast.....

They'd just take the platters out in a clean room and put it into another drive. Wala, data recovery is in progress.

"Wala" ? lol.
 

nonameo

Diamond Member
Mar 13, 2006
5,902
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Sheesh, just write someone else's name on the outside of the drive. That'll fool em.
 

Fayd

Diamond Member
Jun 28, 2001
7,970
2
76
www.manwhoring.com
Originally posted by: Fenixgoon
Originally posted by: Fayd
would a thermite reaction make it through the top layer of the HDD into the innards of the HDD?

edit: the real question. does thermite supply its own oxygen?

probably. thermite burns at about 1500C, and does supply its own oxygen (Fe2O3 + 2Al --> 2Fe + AL2O3)

well... i just watched some thermite crap on youtube.

it seems plausible to set up a small pot of thermite on top of the HDD, with an electrical lighter running to a button. someone breaks in, hit the button, thermite ignites. your computer is completely fucked, but hey, the HDD is gone... literally.
 

jagec

Lifer
Apr 30, 2004
24,442
6
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Originally posted by: RedSquirrel
... By the general public. We don't know what the FBI/goverment knows.

Now your right chances are they can't either, but you can't assume that either, don't take the chances.

Well if the government has time travel technology, they can just take your drive back in time to when the data was still on it, so those methods won't work either. They probably don't, but we can't assume that, so we shouldn't take the chance.

We need a method which is time travel-proof, brain scan-proof, AND computer recovery-proof.
Originally posted by: RedSquirrel
But what if they do find a crack in say, 10 years from now? They'll have the data. It's all crazy talk at this point, but it's best to just assume they can do it, and play it safe. ;)

Also do tin foil hats REALLY work? :p

No; in fact, they actually AMPLIFY government mind-control signals:Q
 

frostedflakes

Diamond Member
Mar 1, 2005
7,925
1
81
OS such as PuppyLinux, DamnSmallLinux, etc. run completely in RAM. Shut the system off and all data is lost.

That's not really the whole story, data does persist in the RAM, but at room temperature I don't think it's longer than fractions of a second.
 

frostedflakes

Diamond Member
Mar 1, 2005
7,925
1
81
Originally posted by: Alistar7
mount CPU to missile, when the feds come launch into space, laugh in their face....
Then get thrown in jail anyway for obstruction of justice. :D

Not to mention no data is stored on the CPU, so that doesn't do you any good.
 

Cogman

Lifer
Sep 19, 2000
10,283
134
106
1. Make sure you have an acrylic case for this method.
2. Get supermagnet #42 from http://www.unitednuclear.com/magnets.htm
3. When the FBI comes knocking at the door, start waving the magnet around the hard drive like there is no tommarow. The more horizontal motion with the horizon of the platter, the more likely it is that you will destroy it.

You should be able to get about 5-6 good swipes with these (if they don't rip the platter right out of the hard drive, not joking.) after you have moved it around, you can go ahead and leave it attached to the hard drive. Just the motions of the flourensics team with removing the magnet will destroy a ton of data, and there wouldn't be much of a way around it for them.

You might want to test this method out on a couple of hard drives first in loo of the FBI.
 

RaistlinZ

Diamond Member
Oct 15, 2001
7,470
9
91
Microwave it.

Toss it in, set timer, jump out of 2nd story window before the place explodes.
 

Gamingphreek

Lifer
Mar 31, 2003
11,679
0
81
Originally posted by: RedSquirrel
Who says they even use brute force? They probably have some other way like pattern recognition or something. I recall reading that they can crack any SSL data in seconds. That means your banking and other https stuff.

Also the fact that they have it is a danger on it's own as from that point, even if it does take years, it will get cracked.

Though realisticly speaking they probably wont bother going too far as they can catch someone else in least time by continuing their door to door search. But if they specifically want your data then yeah you want to ensure even the encrypted data itself is not readable.

Pattern recognition - would that not be a more intelligent form of brute force? Also what would the point be - a proper password would be completely random.

FURTHERMORE - do you realize how incredibly large 256-bit is? That is 2^256 or:
1.15792089 × 10^77
 

Muadib

Lifer
May 30, 2000
17,978
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Originally posted by: necine
No it wouldn't probably need to have a bomb rigged to your computer.

This is the only thing mentioned, that has a chance of working. It would have to be something big enough to take out the whole room. Even then, there is no guarantee that the platters on the disk will be destroyed.

 

Eli

Super Moderator | Elite Member
Oct 9, 1999
50,419
8
81
Originally posted by: ed21x
it will spark up and burn in the microwave. The whole HD will be melted within a minute.

Nuking a harddrive would most certainly kill the electronics, I would be willing to bet that the data would be largely if not completely untouched. The platters are surrounded by metal, it would conduct any currents away from the platters.
 

LikeLinus

Lifer
Jul 25, 2001
11,518
670
126
The #1 thing you should do = Post on ATOT about how to cover up your illegal activities. Any prosecutor would have a field day with destroyed evidence and post on the internet about how you asked to do so.

lol
 

seti920

Member
Dec 23, 2001
175
0
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Originally posted by: schneiderguy
Obviously things like thermite or grinding it into 100000 pieces would work, but if you only have 30 seconds to do it those aren't good choices.

Why isn't thermite a good choice? Some sensitive military equipment [old, outdated now] had brackets for thermite grenades built in. In the event that stuff had to go away NOW, pull the pin, walk away, pile of slag is left.

It works, and it's damn good at what it is meant for. Besides, you get extra points for killing it with fire.
 

91TTZ

Lifer
Jan 31, 2005
14,374
1
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Originally posted by: TridenTBoy3555
Originally posted by: SSSnail


Let's just say I work VERY closely with digital forensics, and let me tell you it's not that easy to recover data as Hollywood made out to believe, nor it is easy to get rid of it (as suggested in popular movies by running magnets along the rigs).

This!

It is NOT easy to get all that evidence back... You put it up to a magnet or wipe it with DBAN and you are good to go. :)

????

He just got done saying that putting it up to magnets isn't going to erase it.
 

Dman877

Platinum Member
Jan 15, 2004
2,707
0
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How about one of those arm sling-shot dealies that are supposed to launch things 300 yards? Open your window and launch that puppy to the next zip code, preferably into a river or the woods maybe.