will a magnet damage a hard drive

[dsa1971]

I bought an external hard drive enclosure and it came with a leather case with a flap that closes shut with a magnet. Obviously it's not a powerful magnet but could it affect my hard drive at all?

 

[Rubycon]

It should not pose a problem. The magnets on those flaps are quite powerful and will erase strips on credit cards though!

 

[0roo0roo]

magnet power diminishes very very rapidly with distance. let alone through a metal case. its why magnets only feel "stuck" on something when they are basically touching.
a magnet so powerful that could affect your drive would make the flap dangerous to use

 

[0roo0roo]

http://www.dansdata.com/gz009.htm