How do you 'physically' erase a HDD?

[ripthesystem]

That's it:

How do you 'physically' erase a HDD? Without having it in a computer?
Magnets? Electricity?

I know that you are not supposed to keep magnetic things around computers, etc. because of potential data loss. But what if that is your goal? Will a magnet from the fridge work?

I don't want to smash the drive with a hammer or use gasoline etc. Just erase the drive. How do I do it? (Software solutions are not an option either.)

I've tried some searches online and not come up with much. A few '500 ways to toast a CD-R' but not for a Hard drive...

thanks
ripthesystem

 

[PCMarine]

Why not just quickly pop it into any comp and do a low level format? Using a magnet or something similar might screw up the drive completely...

 

[buleyb]

If you plan on using the drive in the future, you'll need either a software or additional hardware solution (I do know someone makes a hard drive formatter, but I don't know if its even possible for you to buy one). If you don't plan on using the drive again (or if the interface is broken so a hardware/software solution isn't a possibility, just pull the platters out an sand them down

even heavy lift or strong magnets won't erase your drive to the point of no recovery. Hell, even fire might not pull that one off, as they have some pretty good methods for recovering data if its important enough

 

[GiLtY]

Originally posted by: PCMarine
Why not just quickly pop it into any comp and do a low level format? Using a magnet or something similar might screw up the drive completely...

Yeah I think low level format would do the job well. It just fills zeroes into every data sector, but I heard some software can recover data more than one level deep? Can someone confirm this?

--GiLtY

 

[GnomeCop]

fire.

 

[PCMarine]

Originally posted by: GiLtY

Originally posted by: PCMarine
Why not just quickly pop it into any comp and do a low level format? Using a magnet or something similar might screw up the drive completely...

Yeah I think low level format would do the job well. It just fills zeroes into every data sector, but I heard some software can recover data more than one level deep? Can someone confirm this?

--GiLtY

I think the US government has published that doing a low level format 6 or so consequtive times makes the drive unrecoverable by even advanced data recovery businesses.

 

[buleyb]

There are actually a lot of drive wiping 'standards'. The DoD has several, the most extreme being 7 passes of changing bit patterns, recovery from 1 can be fairly easy with some consumer software, 3 gets tough and is the typical business sector extreme, 5 and 7 passes are typical DoD security measures.

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Originally posted by: GnomeCop
fire.

What he said. Unless you want to spend about an hour per gig doing an eight-layer random write, you're not getting data security unless you destroy the drive physically.

- M4H

 

[ripthesystem]

Ok thanks for the info guys, but-

I cannot physically destroy the drive (like with fire or a hammer etc)
and the drive is unrecognizable in any BIOS so all the writing zeros and random software solutions are NOT an option.

The erasing doesn't have to be 100% fed proof or anything. Just good enough that someone would HAVE to go to extreme measures to get the info.

any other ideas? is this even a possibility?

thx
ripthesystem

 

[buleyb]

hmm, you try in another computer?

 

[Budman]

maybe drop it in a bucket of water ?

 

[Nebor]

See, you didn't tell us the drive didn't work at first. We thought you had the senator's dirty little secrets or something on your HD, and you wanted to be real sure it was gone.

 

[ripthesystem]

Originally posted by: Nebor
See, you didn't tell us the drive didn't work at first.

Sorry about that. I rewrote the post once or twice.. that fact got lost in the rewrite.

We thought you had the senator's dirty little secrets or something on your HD, and you wanted to be real sure it was gone.

ehem... I do want to make real sure that it's gone.

 

[arcenite]

Originally posted by: ripthesystem

Originally posted by: Nebor
See, you didn't tell us the drive didn't work at first.

Sorry about that. I rewrote the post once or twice.. that fact got lost in the rewrite.

We thought you had the senator's dirty little secrets or something on your HD, and you wanted to be real sure it was gone.

ehem... I do want to make real sure that it's gone.

You confuse me..

1. The drive does not work, but you don't want to destroy it
2. The drive has data on it that you don't want to be recovered, you can't use it in a computer because it doesn't work, and... you don't want to destroy it.

It's either one or the other.

Bill

 

[randumb]

Originally posted by: aRCeNiTe

Originally posted by: ripthesystem

Originally posted by: Nebor
See, you didn't tell us the drive didn't work at first.

Sorry about that. I rewrote the post once or twice.. that fact got lost in the rewrite.

We thought you had the senator's dirty little secrets or something on your HD, and you wanted to be real sure it was gone.

ehem... I do want to make real sure that it's gone.

You confuse me..

1. The drive does not work, but you don't want to destroy it
2. The drive has data on it that you don't want to be recovered, you can't use it in a computer because it doesn't work, and... you don't want to destroy it.

It's either one or the other.

Bill

1. Just because the drive doesn't work, doesn't mean other people could get the data out of it. You can take the platters out of the hard drive, and read them off of a working head, and recover all the data.
2. He wants to destroy the drive, but not with some crude method like burning it or something. Not everyone is comfortable with smashing, slicing, burning, etc. objects.

Now, back on topic. There is one physical destruction method you could try. Uncrew the drive, and take the platters out, and try soldering parts of it.

 

[WarCon]

A normal magnet won't affect the data on a hard drive. You have to use a degaussing field to affect the tiny dipoles in the platters. The Hard Drive will not be usable again after degaussing.

Note: For those that think a normal magnet will damage the drive, disassemble a relatively modern hard drive and check out the magnets that the head uses for movement. They are the latest and greatest in magnets and are very strong for their size (in other words be careful when you put them together as they will pinch you if your not careful).

 

[arcenite]

Originally posted by: WarCon
A normal magnet won't affect the data on a hard drive. You have to use a degaussing field to affect the tiny dipoles in the platters. The Hard Drive will not be usable again after degaussing.

Note: For those that think a normal magnet will damage the drive, disassemble a relatively modern hard drive and check out the magnets that the head uses for movement. They are the latest and greatest in magnets and are very strong for their size (in other words be careful when you put them together as they will pinch you if your not careful).

I took apart an old HD and use the magnets to hang stuff on the fridge... stuff never falls ;-)

Bill

 

[mechBgon]

I was "erasing" a few old drives at work today. Try my procedure:

• Remove the cover of the drive
• Unscrew the platter-retaining plate on the end of the spindle
• Remove the actuator or break its arms off, to get them out of the way
• Remove the platters from the spindle
• Scratch them up nicely with a sharp pointy object (bonus points for artistic scratches)
• Fold the platter in half (assuming they're aluminum platters, not glass)
• Fold the folded platter in half again
• Toss the folded-into-quarters platter on the floor
• Stomp on it a couple times
• Throw it away

If you have access to nitric acid or an oxyacetylene torch... yeah

 

[OverVolt]

Drive your car over it?

 

[ShaqDiesel]

Degaussing isn't even a 'fail-safe' method - the teachers at my school tried (for curiousity's sake) putting a hard drive in a field of 3 degaussers (something like that, I was tired that day) and they were still able to get the data back.

In reality, the only fail-safe way of making data irrecoverable is to smash the sucker or take it apart and ruin it inside-out.

 

[dpopiz]

I think the easiest and most effective method mentioned so far is buleyb's

just pull the platters out an sand them down

 

[jm0ris0n]

See this thread How to wipe a hardrive

 

[TheBoyBlunder]

If you really want to destroy the drive you could go for a thermite reaction. Be very very careful if you do this, though.

 

[Jeff7181]

Hmmmm... a way to erase a hard drive without beating the hell out of it and without using software to erase it.

I supposed water would work if the platters are glass, cause don't they put a layer of iron on it? Iron will rust like crazy... better yet, use salt water, salt accelerates the oxidization process as those of you from the northern states have experience with your cars in the winter.

Hmmmm... that's a tough one if you're not willing to take it apart and physically destroy the platters.

 

[mechBgon]

Actually, strong NaOH (lye) will dissolve aluminum. Got any Liquid Plumber around?