How can I kill a MicroSD card...

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cobo

Member
Oct 23, 2002
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without leaving any marks?

The 32GB MicroSD card I purchased in May no longer retains files that are written to it, the files that are on it can't be deleted and no software I've tried can successfully format it.

SDFormatter complains that it is write-protected. Windows XP, HP USB Formatter and other programs are unable to complete a format. My Symbian phone appears to successfully format the card, but when the card is mounted in Windows the old files are still there.

Attempts to rewrite the partition table with EaseUS Partition Master and TestDisk have been unsuccessful.

An HD Tune error scan showed 1.4% damaged blocks and a subsequent scan reported a higher percentage. A surface scan with EaseUS Partition Master shows bad blocks and gets hung up without completing.

Some of the files the card stubbornly retains contain private or personal information and I don't want to apply for RMA until I 'm certain the files are deleted or the card is rendered unreadable.

The manufacturer's tech support suggested wiping it with PartedMagic but that was ineffective too.

Are there any other ways to make it unreadable?
 
Last edited:
Charlie98

Charlie98

Diamond Member
Nov 6, 2011
6,292
62
91
I'd probably reword that title... considering you are trying to RMA it.

Personally, I would physically destroy it if it has private or proprietary data on it... and just suck up the cost.
 
Elixer

Elixer

Lifer
May 7, 2002
10,376
762
126
It sounds like a hardware issue, so, there is really nothing you can do except to get the hammer out, if you don't want any of those files seen by anyone else.
 
bbhaag

bbhaag

Diamond Member
Jul 2, 2011
6,645
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Have you tried DBAN yet? Fair warning. Use at your own risk. Disconnect any drives that are not vital to performing the rewrite.
 
TheELF

TheELF

Diamond Member
Dec 22, 2012
3,973
730
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Probably the controller got fried so no program will work, you will have to physically destroy the card.
 
S

schmuckley

Platinum Member
Aug 18, 2011
2,335
1
0
Fire.Kill it with fire.
Seriously..How much did you pay for that microSD and how many GB is it?
 
Last edited:
Cerb

Cerb

Elite Member
Aug 26, 2000
17,484
33
86
cobo said:
without leaving any marks?
Click to expand...
You don't, given the symptoms. If it won't write, it's hosed, and your files are going to be stuck there. If you want to use the warranty, accept that the company will take care of it, and cares not for your data. If you want to protect your data, destroy the card.

You could try baking it, but I offer no guarantees that the plastic shell will survive, nor that the kitchen will not have hazardous gases waiting for you :).
 
bradly1101

bradly1101

Diamond Member
May 5, 2013
4,689
294
126
www.bradlygsmith.org
cobo said:
without leaving any marks?

The 32GB MicroSD card I purchased in May no longer retains files that are written to it, the files that are on it can't be deleted and no software I've tried can successfully format it.

SDFormatter complains that it is write-protected. Windows XP, HP USB Formatter and other programs are unable to complete a format. My Symbian phone appears to successfully format the card, but when the card is mounted in Windows the old files are still there.

Attempts to rewrite the partition table with EaseUS Partition Master and TestDisk have been unsuccessful.

An HD Tune error scan showed 1.4% damaged blocks and a subsequent scan reported a higher percentage. A surface scan with EaseUS Partition Master shows bad blocks and gets hung up without completing.

Some of the files the card stubbornly retains contain private or personal information and I don't want to apply for RMA until I 'm certain the files are deleted or the card is rendered unreadable.

The manufacturer's tech support suggested wiping it with PartedMagic but that was ineffective too.

Are there any other ways to make it unreadable?
Click to expand...

That's exectly how my SanDisk 64GB micro SD died. I did copy and delete a large number of large files to it.

But when I could no longer copy to it, I couldn't delete from it either. I sent it in with an RMA and it had my entire music collection on it. It's my theory that this inability to erase is built-in so that the RMA department always has people's data to play with ;-)
 
H

hhhd1

Senior member
Apr 8, 2012
667
3
71
connect it directly to a 110/240 volt mains line, this is potentially dangerous as it might short circuit, and might be a fire hazard, and risk of electrocution. , but it should fry its internals, but, it also might leave a mark, like burn mark.
 
tortillasoup

tortillasoup

Golden Member
Jan 12, 2011
1,977
3
81
If it's a Sandisk 32GB or 64GB, there is a recall on those SD cards, huge batch of them are failing. As for trying to destroy it, get a 9V battery or even 2 9V batteries in series, and just shock the shit out of it, that'll probably make it 100% unusable. I actually did that for a cable modem I had to warranty since it was suffering from an intermittent failure and I couldn't afford it to "magically start working" when they were to test it out for warranty purposes. What really killed the modem was hooking up a car battery to it with reversed polarity of how the modem should be powered.
 
R

Ratman6161

Senior member
Mar 21, 2008
616
75
91
If I had personal data on there that I didn't want to risk others getting access to, I'd physically destroy the card even if it meant losing the money I spent on it. Fire is your friend here.
 
B

blero

Junior Member
Jan 17, 2016
1
0
0
Hello all google bring me here my friends i found this post from google i know is old topic :) i have exactly this problem with sdcard how did u fix it or u destroy? I cant delete anything. I have warranty but they wont change card cuz they want the old one i have data in sdcard im afraid to send them back. I cant even format it . Tried all software active kill disk sdformater partition wizard partion master aomei usb fixer usb format tool low format hdd its damaged when test it with hdtune .. like i said tried everything :) files still inside cant delete it.to send sdcard back.i think the only hope is to destroy :(

Sandisk extreme 32gb

Thanks
 
Coup27

Coup27

Platinum Member
Jul 17, 2010
2,140
3
81
blero said:
Hello all google bring me here my friends i found this post from google i know is old topic :) i have exactly this problem with sdcard how did u fix it or u destroy? I cant delete anything. I have warranty but they wont change card cuz they want the old one i have data in sdcard im afraid to send them back. I cant even format it . Tried all software active kill disk sdformater partition wizard partion master aomei usb fixer usb format tool low format hdd its damaged when test it with hdtune .. like i said tried everything :) files still inside cant delete it.to send sdcard back.i think the only hope is to destroy :(
Click to expand...

Cerb said:
You don't, given the symptoms. If it won't write, it's hosed, and your files are going to be stuck there. If you want to use the warranty, accept that the company will take care of it, and cares not for your data. If you want to protect your data, destroy the card.
Click to expand...
+1. You want to RMA the card because it's broken. You also want to re-write all of the data on the card to erase your data before sending it back, which you can't, because it's broken. If you could, then it wouldn't be broken and you wouldn't need to RMA it. It's a pointless cycle.

You either need to RMA it and accept that the manufacturers RMA department probably have better things to do than to attempt to recover data from failed products or forget about it and buy another. Any attempt to destroy it yourself like some of the suggestions in this thread will void the warranty if you do RMA it thus wasting even more time.
 
Elixer

Elixer

Lifer
May 7, 2002
10,376
762
126
Coup27 said:
You either need to RMA it and accept that the manufacturers RMA department probably have better things to do than to attempt to recover data from failed products or forget about it and buy another. Any attempt to destroy it yourself like some of the suggestions in this thread will void the warranty if you do RMA it thus wasting even more time.
Click to expand...

Heh, I dunno, don't underestimate the power of a bored tech... :D

Bottom line is, the ONLY way to keep private data private is to destroy it physically.
Forget about the RMA, since you have some super secret stuff on there, like tax records, home videos, and whatever else.
 
jhansman

jhansman

Platinum Member
Feb 5, 2004
2,768
29
91
I'm surprised no one has suggested the ultimate solution that comes up whenever a big spider shows up in the OT forum—kill it with fire!
 
Zodiark1593

Zodiark1593

Platinum Member
Oct 21, 2012
2,230
4
81
If the data is worth so much that the 0.0001% chance someone happens across it you get ruined, incinerate the thing, scatter the ashes.
 
S

shabby

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
5,779
40
91
Pin 4 and 6(long ones) are voltage/ground... supply more voltage than it needs.
 
blankslate

blankslate

Diamond Member
Jun 16, 2008
8,595
474
126
Kill it with fire.... FIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIREFIRE


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