How to Securely Dispose of Old Hard Drive? -[Best Practices]

You use hard drives in your Windows system to store all the important files and folders. Some drives often help you to back up your data. With the continuous use and passage of time, these drives go bad, and others get too small. In such cases, it is considered good to replace them. You may be able to dispose of your old drives, but in some cases, it became quite difficult. 

There are several reasons why you should destroy your hard drive, mainly it is for data security. The hard drive contains crucial information like bank details, addresses, and more that you must need to prevent from the wrong hands. Here, in this article, we have mentioned how you can file wipe software

Why it is important to Destroy a Hard Drive properly?

There are several circumstances in which you need to destroy a hard drive. A business/home computer hard drive contains information like credit card numbers, bank account numbers, and passwords. This sensitive information remains on the hard drive even if you erase or reformat your hard drive. It is very important to correctly destroy the hard drive so all the sensitive information can be preserved from unauthorized access. There are professional hard drive shredding in Atlanta or anywhere nearby that are readily available, ensuring that your sensitive information is completely and securely destroyed, leaving no room for unauthorized access or data breaches.

Depending on the kind and size of hard drive you are using, it takes more or less time to dispose of it. Laptops have a glass or ceramic platters, which are fragile, to begin with. They get easily damaged if not handled with care. On the other hand, desktop/computers usually come with aluminum platters that are solid in nature.

Before recycling or donating your computer to anyone, it is important to completely remove its hard drives. This helps you to ensure that the data on the hard drives are completely erased and untraceable by others. If your hard drive contains personal photos, music, or any such thing, be sure to back this information upon a new hard drive. 

Common Mistakes That Users Made While Disposing of Hard Drives

Before knowing how to dispose of an old hard drive, it is important to know some general mistakes that users made while disposing of their hard drives. These mistakes include:

• Using a hammer: Many people bash or hit an old hard drive with a hammer. It is a dangerous method as it makes bits of glass or metal fly here and there.
• Placing in a Recycle Bin: This method has good intentions and is very simple. But simply placing a hard drive in a recycle bin doesn’t stop someone to steal or remove it from there. This can easily cause information theft and even serious data breach.
• Deleting all the data: When you delete a file from your device, it does not simply disappear from it. Even if you delete all files from the recycle bin, the old data remains as it is.

How to Dispose of Hard Drives Securely?

Always Hard drives separately from the rest of the computer as they store large volumes of data. There are several methods that you can use for disposing of an old hard drive. Software, like Bitraser File Eraser, can permanently wipe all the sensitive files stored on your laptop or desktop PC. Given below are some disastrous methods to dispose of old hard drives:

• Format the hard drive: Even if you fully format the hard drive, it is possible to recover data from it. Just like the ‘delete’ issue, special software can recover all the data.
• Lock up obsolete hard drives: Some workplaces do not shred their hard drives and they stockpile them on-site. It is possible to steal all the information from the hard drive, even if it is in a locked storage area.
• Erase or wipe data: Few data recovery study shows that third-party software can recover deleted data. It is easy to wipe the hard drives and their identifiable information.
• Overwriting: You can use Windows and Mac OS X overwrite utility software to protect your important data. But it leaves ‘ghost’ traces that other users or programs can retrieve. 
• Acid: Wiping the hard drive using any software and then destroying it physically with acid prevent all the stored data. This can cause harmful fumes, so do the right measures. Do this outdoor in a place with proper ventilation, and wear protective clothing. You can use household chemicals like diluted hydrochloric or muriatic acid for this purpose.

Use BitRaser File Eraser to Safely Dispose of Old Hard Drive 

If the above methods do not work and you still need to know how to dispose of an old hard drive, use the Bitraser file eraser. It is popular software that safeguards your personal data from the wrong hands. It permanently erases traces, deleted data, files, and folders from your Hard drives. 

Why BitRaser File Eraser?

This secure file erasure software wipes all the sensitive data from your system. It erases files from all Windows PC and external storage devices. Check out some amazing facts about the software that makes it unique from the following points:

• It erases identity documents, photos, videos, and all types of files.
• Clear cache and browsing history from browsers, like Chrome, Mozilla, Internet Explorer, etc.
• Wipe online banking information, like email passwords saved on the browser.
• Wipe hard drive, USB drive, SD card, and other storage devices.

How does BitRaser File Transfer work?

The whole work of this file eraser software is a three-step process. All you have to do is:

• Step 1: Launch the software and click Erase Traces. Click the ‘Scan’ button to wipe the system, app, and Internet traces.

• Step 2: Navigate to Erase Deleted Data tab and choose the storage drive(s). Tap the‘ Erase Now’ button.

• Step 3: Go to ‘Erase Files & Folders from the left navigation pane to add the files and folders for erasure. Click ‘Erase Now’.

Wrapping Up:

It is not easy to maintain data protection and privacy. If you want to replace your old hard drive with a new one, it is important to erase all its data to prevent unauthorized access. There are several methods by which you can safely dispose of the old hard drives. We have also provided the software that you can use to dispose of your old hard drives.