[SPAM] [Hidden-tech] Recycling dead computers?

[Chris Hoogendyk]

Chris Woods wrote:
> One thing to keep in mind when recycling your old computer (or selling
> it or giving it away): remove the hard disk. Re-formatting is
> insufficient to protect your personal data (doubly true of Windows).
> Take the hard disk out and physically destroy it (a hammer, safety
> goggles, and a hard surface work well for this).
>
> See this study by Simson Garfinkel at MIT for more info:
> http://tinyurl.com/2d8ysp


Or, check out the links here:

http://www.nsa.gov/snac/downloads_macOSX10_4Server.cfm?MenuID=scg10.3.1.1

While those are good links in general for system security, the point in 
question here is the secure erasure of data. In MacOSX there is actually 
a command line utility for securely erasing data. It will do up to 35 
overwrites of the data with successive passes of 0's, 1's and random 
data. This meets the U.S. Department of Defense standard for the
sanitation fro magnetic media. So, no harm hammering the drive if you 
are going to recycle the computer for raw materials; but, if you are 
going to donate it, then you can do a secure erasure of private data.

Deeper down in the article linked to by Chris Woods is a statement that 
on modern drives a couple of overwrites should be sufficient. The point 
is that you can't just delete the data, because on most operating 
systems that just unlinks the data blocks and puts them in free space. I 
actually had an experience around 1992 where a software company I worked 
for had some people come in to demo a product they were developing. We 
had top of the line equipment, so they were encouraged to copy their 
code into our computer and demo it there. They carefully "removed" all 
their code and data after the demo. As soon as they left, several 
programmers descended on the computer and went about scouring the blocks 
of free space and reassembling their code. Needless to say, they were 
never called back to arrange any sort of business deal. (As I pass that 
story along, I want to say that the company was not Specular. A number 
of people will be aware that I worked for for Specular for several 
years. They were one of the most ethical companies I ever worked for. 
I'm sure they would not have done that sort of thing. Nor would they 
have needed to. Their programmers could spin magic out of thin air.)



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Chris Hoogendyk

-
   O__  ---- Systems Administrator
  c/ /'_ --- Biology & Geology Departments
 (*) \(*) -- 140 Morrill Science Center
~~~~~~~~~~ - University of Massachusetts, Amherst 

<hoogendyk at bio.umass.edu>

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Erdös 4