How to permanently delete files: - It is not for nothing that we are told that information once provided to the cyber world is never truly deleted, even when we think we have successfully removed it. There are various ways anyone can recover that supposedly deleted information, and we certainly wouldn't want that to happen to us.
This easy data recovery is an advantage if we have accidentally lost some information and want to recover it, but it is a curse to the same extent that we wanted to permanently delete the data and instead find that it can be recovered quickly with a few simple tools. This becomes an even bigger concern if, for example, we want to sell the hard drive, give it to someone else, or simply remove certain data that is unwanted, embarrassing or strictly confidential. What do we do then? Thankfully, just as there are methods to recover lost or deleted information, there are also tools and methods to permanently remove the data.
Read also: - How to permanently delete deleted files in a folder on Windows PC.
This, of course, never means that we should store all kinds of data on our computers just on the basis of the knowledge that we can delete them using anti-recovery tools - we must always be careful what kind of information we are putting into the cyber world for the sake of safety. That said, in case we have information we want to get rid of, no problem - read on to discover our 8 best tools for permanently deleting data.
This free disk cleaning software ensures that the deleted data stays deleted. Put simply, what Moo0 does is not delete or overwrite existing data, but it makes sure that what it was intended to delete cannot be recovered. Moo0 has a simple and clean interface that allows the user to choose exactly which location they want to permanently delete files from. Moo0 opens a dialog with five check boxes, such as Recycle Bin, Free Disk Space, etc., of which you can choose the one that is relevant to you and view the progress of deleting files for each of these locations. A small disadvantage of Moo0 is that freeing up free space is an important function of the software, but it is a rather tedious and time-consuming process. However, the rest of the functions don't take that long, so it's definitely software worth trying.
You can download Moo0 Anti-Recovery from here: http://moo0-anti-recovery.soft112.com/
Eraser is another free software that performs the task of deleting data efficiently. The great thing about Eraser is that it is able to work on removing individual files rather than arbitrarily deleting free space on the drive. So while using Eraser, you can choose exactly which files you want to remove individually. Eraser also offers some sort of schedule or schedule that allows you to set certain times or certain days, when you want Eraser to delete specific types of files for you as a routine task, so you don't have to set Eraser to work again and again. Eraser works by shredding the files you want to remove and overwriting them multiple times with advanced algorithms. Eraser offers many advanced tools for deleting data and may be a bit jaw-dropping for novice users, but it's easy to achieve.
You can download Eraser here: http://eraser.en.softonic.com/
This software is really useful as it comes in a portable form - you can store it on your pen drive or other USB drives and then use it on any system you want. WipeFile supports several languages, not all of them, but enough for most users around the world to find a language they feel comfortable with. WipeFile also has special filters by which the user can distinguish between different types of files to be shredded. There are tools within WipeFile by which the user can only delete, for example, Word files and leave the rest and so on. There are 14 methods offered by WipeFile to permanently delete data from the drive, quickly and efficiently. The only minor disadvantage is that the software starts in the German language, so a user who is not familiar with German will have to go to the Extra option and then select Sprache, to change it to the language they want.
You can download WipeFile here: http://wipefile.en.softonic.com/
This software works securely without any damage to your existing files and data and removes the data you want to delete quite easily. It works just like any other file shredding software by deleting files and making them impossible to recover by any other means. Disk Redactor's USP lies in its guaranteed security: your data will never be at risk of damage if you use this software. Disk Redactor is also very simple to use, all you need to do after installation is launch the software, choose the disk you want to overwrite and let the software work. One downside, however, is that it securely deletes data but is not fully compatible with all systems. Also, it cannot wipe files individually, it can only overwrite entire disks, hence the name Disk Redactor.
You can download Disk Redactor here: http://www.cezeo.com/products/disk-redactor/
SDelete is different from other file shredding software - it works in the command prompt format instead of a typical software interface. SDelete does not have an interface as it works via the command prompt, so all you need to do after installation is open the command prompt from the start menu and type a command related to the drive you want to delete data from, for example, to delete data from drive D, you need to type
sdelete -p 2 -zd:
There isn't much more to say about this relatively simple tool, except that it's effective and fairly hassle-free. However, the recent version seems to have a little problem, as while running the command, it doesn't delete the required folder, rather you need to run the command a few times to get the desired result.
You can download SDelete here: http://download.cnet.com/SDelete/3000-2092_4-95740.html
FileShredder is a completely free tool that safely and effectively removes all the data you want to delete from your drive. There is a built-in file shredder option in the tool which uses a special shredding algorithm to clean free spaces in the drive and the user has the freedom to choose from five different algorithms, each specializing in removing data using different methods but powerful. The software is easy to use, takes up less space than many other tools like Eraser, and has a variety of file deletion features. However, it takes up a lot of CPU capacity and offers very little online help. It also doesn't come with a built-in scheduler, but many other tools also don't offer this functionality, so this particular con isn't much of a concern.
You can download FileShredder here: http://www.fileshredder.org/
The developer even explained why the software is available for free, and that's a really cool gesture!
This software is packed with many cool features, including the ability to overwrite discs up to a hundred times, overwrite file, folder and directory names multiple times, support a variety of shred and delete algorithms, as well as being able to delete timestamps from files and folders easily. Turbo Shredder works flawlessly on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems, so that's another plus point, as most other file deletion tools aren't compatible with multiple systems, Turbo Shredder allows the user to drag and drop drop the files. permanently deleted or use the + option to do the same. It's very easy to use and it's portable too, making it easy to carry on a USB and use anytime, anywhere. However, it does require the Java Runtime Environment to be installed so that it can work and this in itself can be a scam if you plan to take it to a USB unless you can guarantee that all systems you can use it on have Java Runtime installed on them.
You can download Turbo Shredder here: https://sourceforge.net/projects/turboshredder/
HardWipe is a file deletion tool that comes in a nice, descriptive but untidy interface. It offers the user six types of shredding algorithms to choose from and the opportunity to rename files and folders up to ten times, just to be completely sure that the filenames cannot be recovered in any way. HardWipe is available in a portable edition, for those users who prefer On The Go utilities, and is also available in an installation format for other users. You can use HardWipe to remove data from the Recycle Bin, free up disk space, and delete data from physical devices as well. One downside to HardWipe is that unless you upgrade to the paid premium version (there's always a problem, isn't there?) You'll have to resist the constant pop of advertisements while working with the application. However, as it is free and fully functional, as well as the organized interface, it makes it a suitable tool to use for permanently deleting data in a secure way.
You can download HardWipe here: http://www.hardwipe.com/
