Instructions

The first way to delete files and folders without possibilities subsequent recovery is as follows:
- select the file or folder to be deleted by left-clicking on it once;
- press the “Shift + Delete” key combination on your keyboard (on some keyboards, the “Delete” button may also be called “Del”);
- a dialog box will appear asking you to confirm the final deletion of the file;
- in this window, click the “Yes” button to confirm deleting the file or the “No” button to cancel this process.

The second method is to disable the Recycle Bin mode when deleting files. Produce the following actions:
- highlight system folder Recycle Bin by right-clicking on it once (the Recycle Bin folder is located on the Desktop as a shortcut);
- in the action selection menu that appears, click on the “Properties” line. The Trash properties window will pop up in front of you.
- in this window, select the "Global" tab. There are General settings Operating system recycle bins;
- in the selected tab, check the box next to "Destroy" files immediately after deleting them, without placing them in the Recycle Bin." After that, all deleted files and the folders will be destroyed completely, that is, without possibilities their subsequent recovery.

If deleted files and the folders are already in the Trash, then to completely destroy them you need to empty the Trash. To do this, right-click on the Trash icon once and select “Empty Trash” from the menu that appears. Then simply confirm to empty the trash.

Video on the topic

Sometimes users need to delete a file or folder from hard drive or removable media. Usually, to do this, just mark the file and press the Delete key or right-click on the file name and select “Delete” from the context menu. However, standard means do not always work.

Instructions

The file may be occupied by a process that is this moment launched on the computer. In this case, the system displays a message like: “The file (folder) cannot be deleted.” No access". Try to close everything open folders and programs and try again.

If the message repeats, right-click on the taskbar (blue bar at the bottom line of the screen) and launch “Task Manager” from the context menu. Open the "Processes" tab and look carefully to see if the process with the name of the file you are trying to delete is running. Check this process and click End Process. After the system warns, confirm the completion of the process and then try deleting the file again. If the attempt fails, restart your computer (this will close all running programs) and try deleting the file again standard means.

Executable file, which cannot be removed, may be a virus program. Log in in Safe Mode. To do this, after turning on the computer, press the F8 key until the boot mode selection menu appears. Select the top item " Safe mode" and after Windows boot try deleting the file using standard methods.

You can use the free Unlocker program to delete files. Download it from the manufacturer's website and run it. During the installation process, carefully read what exactly you are offered to install. On the first screen, uncheck the box next to “I accept the terms and conditions” license agreement with Hamster Free Zip Archiver"if you do not need an archiver from this developer, and click Next. The next screen will ask you to install SpeedUpMyPC. Uncheck the box if you don't want to do this and click Decline.

In the language installation window, select Russian. When installing the Unlocker program, if you consider yourself an advanced user, select the Advanced method, but uncheck the boxes next to Install Delta Toolbar - later it will be very difficult for you to get rid of this program.

Now, to delete a file, right-click on it and select Unlocker. The program will prompt you to select an action from the list: “No action; Delete; Rename; Move." Use "Delete".

note

If a deleted file or folder appears again every time the system boots, it makes sense to scan your computer for viruses.

Tip 3: How to permanently delete data from HDD

Situations regularly arise when it is necessary to restore personal and service files that were accidentally deleted or located on storage media. The opposite situation, when you need to delete data from the HDD so that no one will ever see it, is less common. However, if you decide to give someone else a hard drive on which confidential data was stored, it can be permanently deleted.

Instructions

Normal deletion and even formatting does not destroy the data, it only changes the information about which files were written where. Data is easy to retrieve. That's why old HDD can be subjected to so-called low-level formatting, which will actually erase all data. When restarting the computer, you need to hold down the Delete or F1 key and enter BIOS menu and find the 50h command there, which will format the hard drive.

New hard drives are formatted at a low level only at the factory before being put into operation, because their design is much more complex. Because low level formatting This is not applicable to modern HDDs, and the 50h command will only write zeros over your data; you need to use software with a data erasure function. Repeated rewriting will make reading deleted information problematic. To do this, you need to install a utility like Victoria (Erase item), HDDScan, Eraser HDD or MHDD. IN BoostSpeed ​​program from Auslogics there is also a function for multiple overwriting of disk sectors.

There are special utilities that replace low-level formatting. It is better to download such programs from the official website of the manufacturer of a particular hard drive. There are also universal utilities, for example, HDD Low Level Format Tool and SeaTools for DOS.

Video on the topic

Removing hidden folders and files from your computer is the same as deleting regular ones, except that you need to enable their display in Windows settings before doing so.

Instructions

Open Control Panel and select the Folder Options menu item. In the window that appears, go to the second settings tab, which is called “View”. Scroll to the end of the list and in one of the last positions, check the “Display hidden folders and files."

Here, check the “Show hidden system folders” checkbox. This will allow you to enter system directories that are hidden from users in order to protect the data contained in them. If you do not have sufficient skills to work with them, do not enable their display in the system.

Apply and save the changes. Here you can also change other settings for folders in your operating system, for example, adjust the visibility of file extensions, change folder thumbnail settings, and many others. The adjacent tab is responsible for associating files of different extensions with applications, after which any registered file type can be opened with a program specifically defined for this purpose at the user’s request. Also here you can configure other parameters regarding the appearance of folders and files in the operating system. Please note that changes will only be available for the current Windows user.

Go to the directory that contains hidden folders and files that you need to delete. Select them using the mouse button and delete them in the usual way, for example, by clicking Delete keys, or Shift+Delete if you want to delete them permanently without the possibility of recovery. If any of hidden elements cannot be deleted, uncheck the “Read Only” attribute in its properties.

Tip 5: VKontakte: how to delete from a social network without the possibility of recovery

The desire to permanently delete your account from the VKontakte social network arises among users due to various reasons. Some are running from addiction, which they suddenly realized, others are running from broken feelings or virtual love.

You will need

• Internet

Instructions

On any free server, for example, yandex.ru or mail.ru, create a new one Mailbox. This can be done without even closing the inbox folder in the browser.

On the VKontakte social network, go to the “Settings” menu. Opposite the value “Who can view”, select the item “Only me”. Other users who visit your page will see a message indicating that the page has been deleted. This way you will notify your friends that you deleted your account intentionally.

Go to the Settings menu and the General submenu. Select "Change Password". Enter in the top field Old Password and, without closing the page, proceed to the next point.

Open the text editor Notepad, switch the layout to English language and randomly press any keyboard keys. Select fifteen characters from this unique password and copy them to the clipboard using the right mouse button or using the Ctrl + C combination. Close Notepad without saving the file.

Return to "Basic" settings. Paste what was copied into the "New Password" line and the "Confirm" line New Password" Click on “Change Password”.

If everything is done correctly, the page will refresh and the message “Password changed” will appear. If this does not happen, repeat the operation until it succeeds. Proceed to the next step only after completing this.

Go to the “Change email” field. Enter in the “New e-mail” line the address of the mailbox that you created in the first steps of the account deletion operation. Click "Change email".

A letter will be sent to your new and old mailbox. First, open the letter from the old mailbox, follow the link to confirm. Then do the same with the letter from the new mailbox. The VKontakte page should close. A window for entering your login/password will appear in front of you.

To eliminate the possibility of using the “Recover Password” button, delete the new mailbox, according to the instructions of the server where it was created.

Video on the topic

Today Google Chrome is one of the most popular browsers. The program has earned its popularity due to the speed and stability of its work. However, in some cases, you may need to reinstall your browser to update, troubleshoot, or reset settings.

Google Chrome on computer

If you want to remove Google Chrome from your computer without being able to restore all your bookmarks, downloads, and saved pages, you can use the Add/Remove tool. Windows programs" By uninstalling the program, you will erase all the settings that were stored on your computer. To go to the Google Chrome uninstaller, click on the “Start” button - “Control Panel” - “Uninstall a program”. In operating rooms Windows systems 8, you can go to the “Control Panel” by using the Metro interface and clicking on the corresponding shortcut in the menu that appears.

Saving bookmarks and settings

If you only want to reinstall Google Chrome, but keep all recorded bookmarks and data, you will need to save configuration files browser located in the program folder.

To save program bookmarks, open Google Chrome and go to the “Bookmarks” - “Bookmarks Manager” menu. You can also access the control menu using the combination Ctrl keys, Shift and O. After that, click “Arrange” - “Export bookmarks to HTML”. In the window that appears, select the folder where you want to save your saved pages.

If you want to save both settings and Chrome bookmarks, you can download all the necessary data to your account Google. To do this, click on the program menu button and go to the “Settings” section. Click on the "Sign in to Chrome" button and enter your account information Google posts(Gmail, Blogger, etc.). You can also specify the account you are using on your Android gadget and iOS.

After logging in, click on the “Yes, sync everything” button. You can specify parameters for synchronization in the “Advanced” section. After the operation, you can remove the browser from your computer through the “Uninstall Programs” menu “Control Panel”.

After the browser is reinstalled, you can restore bookmarks through the menu “Bookmark Manager” - “Arrange” - “Import bookmarks from HTML file" If you want to restore your settings using the specified Google account, go to “Settings” and sign in to the previously specified account again.

To be sure that no one will use your confidential data after you have erased it, advice from specialists and special programs selected by them will help.

User information is becoming increasingly valuable, which means reliable protection against theft is required. Important confidential documents, account information and credit cards- all this can become easy prey for inquisitive attackers. By deleting documents and other important secret data from the Recycle Bin or immediately bypassing it, many users think that they have destroyed them irrevocably and nothing threatens their security.

However, in reality this is not always the case. Any person well versed in computers, if desired, can easily restore information deleted in this way. In addition, a lot of service data is stored in the operating system and on the hard drive in various forms, including about the user’s actions, such as visiting sites, copying and transferring files, what programs he worked with and even when and what flash drives he connected .

If you want to destroy paper documents and optical disks can be used special devices, known as shredders, and fingerprints can be erased, then with the traces left in the PC, everything is not so simple and obvious. For example, even when creating an encrypted file, a temporary, unprotected copy of it can be generated, which an attacker could theoretically later restore. In addition, many programs such as Microsoft Office or Adobe Photoshop, leave service information in files, including information about previous versions, where confidential data that is subsequently erased by the user can be stored.

We'll tell you about the main ways to remove personal information from the system and when working in different programs and subsequent cleaning free space on the disk to eliminate chances of recovery deleted files. In addition, you will learn about the features of cleaning solid-state drives.

Destroying temporary files

Temporary files that are created can tell you quite a lot about the user. various applications, such as MS Office, and, of course, browsers. To destroy temporary files, it is best to use special utilities that do their job automatically.

CCleaner. Free Windows cleaning utility. Among other functions, it allows you to clear free space on the HDD from previously deleted files and safely erase information. To do this, go to the “Service | Erasing disks." Specify what exactly you want to remove, as well as the method (for example, “NSA (7 passes)”), and select the drive. To destroy data, CCleaner provides the user with a choice of algorithm: single overwrite, 3, 7, or 35 cycles.

Mars WinCleaner- this is no longer a new, but very reliable utility for deleting temporary files - the result of the work of many programs. Unfortunately, this program does not have a function for completely erasing information, but it can be configured to automatic cleaning system from temporary files according to a schedule, as well as at the time the computer is turned on or off.

Kaspersky Internet Security Thanks to its “Remove Activity Traces” function, it allows you to remove most of the temporary files that can tell about your work with your PC. You can find this option in the “Tools” section.

Clearing data in programs and documents

A document that you have edited many times often contains part of its history, and using standard or special tools, its previous versions can be partially restored.

For example, files with the PSD extension of the Photoshop photo editor contain a history of changes, which can be used both for good - to edit the image, and to identify some details that the user would like to hide. To avoid this, you should copy the completed version of the document into a new one, clean file and forward it to the recipient. This way you will get rid of the change history. You can check this by comparing the sizes of the new file and the old one that was edited.

In addition, when using old Microsoft versions Office, it may be useful to install a plugin from the manufacturer - Remove Hidden Data, which allows you to remove from Microsoft documents Office 2003/XP various service information. In the 2007 version, to do this, click on the round button with the program logo and select “Prepare | Document Inspector”, then in the window that appears, mark the necessary menu items with checkboxes and click on the “Check” button. After scanning, the wizard will prompt you to delete the found data. In Office 2010, this feature can be found in the File | Details | Troubleshooting | Document Inspector."

Browser cleaning

To automatically or manually remove personal information from Internet browsers one-time, you must change their settings.

Mozilla Firefox. To remove traces in this application, you need to go to “Tools | Settings" and on the "Privacy" tab, check the "Clear history when closing Firefox" checkbox or configure the program in a way convenient for you, for example, so that the browser does not initially save information.

Internet Explorer. You can use the keyboard shortcut “Ctrl+Shift+Del” or the menu item “Tools | Delete browsing history."

Opera. Click on the "Opera" button and go to "Settings | Delete personal data." In this window, you can use the drop-down list to specify in detail what data should be deleted.

Apple Safari. Click on the gear button and select “Reset Safari” from the menu that opens.

Google Chrome. Go to settings by clicking on the right top corner button with three lines, or just enter in address bar chrome://chrome/settings and on the settings page that opens, click on “Show additional settings", and then click the "Clear history" button.

Automatic and manual system cleaning

If you don't want to install additional programs, you can use the Windows registry, browser settings and local OS security policies.

Swap file. Elements of processed confidential information may remain in this storage. For his automatic cleaning you need to do the following: Press the key combination “Win+R” and in the line that appears, enter the command “secpol.msc” (without quotes). Click OK. In the window that opens, go to “ Local policies| Security Settings" and on the right side of the window select "Shut down: clear the page file" virtual memory" Double click on it. In the settings window, set the mode to “Enable” and click the “Apply” button. Now, when you turn off your PC, the page file will be automatically cleared.

Information stored on the Internet

It's not just your computer that may contain user data - in social networks even after you delete previously downloaded photos or your pages, they remain in storage and can be restored at the request of intelligence services. All records about the IP addresses you use when connecting, passwords, correspondence, etc. are also stored for a long time.

Therefore, try not to transfer important and unencrypted information to cloud storage: they can be hacked or be under constant surveillance by various intelligence services and security services of a competing company. Even when deleting data from the cloud, you have no guarantee that copies of it will not remain in storage and will not be transferred to outsiders or captured by attackers.

Clearing free disk space

At standard deletion the file is not completely destroyed - the operating system only erases the address of its location. The data itself can be stored on the HDD quite long time until they are overwritten by other information. And even after rewriting, such information can be partially restored. To ensure the destruction of data, we recommend that you use publicly available programs that ensure irreversible deletion of information.

eraser. This is the most popular free utility that allows you to truly reliably destroy documents, including the Guttmann method, in which the file is overwritten 35 times with random data. Eraser also offers the function of clearing free space on the HDD to completely destroy erased information.

Kremlin. This is a real data harvester, and file destruction is only part of its functionality. Also, with its help, you can encrypt information and remove traces of computer work. Among other things, Kremlin offers useful function cleaning random access memory, where important information may be stored.

Acronis True Image Home 2013. In addition to the basic functions of backing up data, the application will help you irreversibly delete specific files and folders, as well as clean up already empty space on disk. In this case, you can choose a data destruction algorithm.

Flash drive tracking

The operating system can even remember information about previously connected flash drives. Using the USBDview program, you can see when and which flash drive was connected, and also erase this information. You can also delete such information in the Registry Editor in the following branches:

"HKLM\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Enum\USBST OR"

"HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Enum\U SBSTOR."

Wiping SSD

The technique of repeatedly rewriting data to delete it without a trace is destructive for solid-state drives due to their limited resource. In addition, studies have shown that not a single software method of deleting information guarantees its complete destruction - from 4 to 91% of “safely” erased files can be restored. Therefore, the only reliable way permanent deletion data from an SSD means physical destruction of the media.

Hardware erasers

If your HDD or flash drive contains important information that needs to be destroyed quickly and irreversibly, one way is to use hardware.

For internal hard drive ov

Now there are devices on the market that allow you to reliably and in a short time destroy all information stored on a “protected” hard drive. There is even a function for extreme cases - physical damage HDD. One of such devices is the domestic development 2S-994 “Priboy”. The cost of such a device is almost equal to the average PC performance and is about 16,000 rubles.

For portable disks and flash drives

In the age of mobility, transporting confidential information on portable drives can be safe if you take special care in advance. For example, there are special media with the ability remote monitoring behind their position, blocking recorded and encrypted information upon command, and even physically destroying the drive. The Security Guardian flash drive, developed by ExactTrak Ltd., has similar functions. It can also automatically self-destruct, block or delete information if the drive is removed from the specified perimeter. Servicing such a flash drive will cost approximately 1,300 rubles per month, while the cost of the 32 GB drive itself is 20,000 rubles, including the first year of security service.

Review of the Unlocker program for Windows, as well as its analogues. Detailed instructions, how to delete files and folders that are not deleted, forcibly: by closing processes that block deletion.

Description of the Unlocker program

Unlocker effective program to delete undeletable files in the Windows OS environment. It bypasses system restrictions and points the user to processes that block access. These processes interfere with deletion, causing undeletable in the usual way files and folders.

Unlocker is one of the few utilities that has clear interface in Russian. This is partly why the program is very easy to use. In Unlocker, you can drag files into the window and immediately delete the files, killing unnecessary processes. IN right column The current status of the file or folder is displayed:

• "not blocked" - you can delete an undeletable file without forcing other processes to close.
• “blocked” - Unlocker will tell you which processes are preventing you from forcibly deleting a folder (file), after which you can force close them and perform the desired operation.

Main features of the Unlocker program

• force deletion of files and directories on disk
• deleting folders and multiple files at the same time
• viewing processes that block removal in the usual way

Scenarios when the Unlocker utility can be useful

• access to the file or folder is denied (the program is being used by another process)
• there are connections to the file via local network
• the source or destination path is being used by another application
• the file is occupied by another system process

In general, if a folder or file is not deleted, Unlocker is a universal and simple tool for forcing deletion.

Further, in the instructions, we will tell you how to delete undeletable files quickly and safely. Note that we're talking about about a program called IObit Unlocker. There is an application of the same name on the Internet (Emptyloop Unlocker), but it has not been developed since 2013, and the official website is inaccessible. As for Unlocker from the developers of IObit, this product is in development and can be downloaded from the link below.

Where to download the Unlocker program

You can download Unlocker, a program for deleting undeletable files, on the downloads page. Link on the right.

Although latest version Unlocker 1.1 was released in 2015, there are compatibility problems with new ones Windows versions No. The list includes Windows 10 / 8 / 7 / Vista / XP.

Unlocker is available in two versions: Portable and standard installation(IObit Unlocker 1.1 Final). The Portable version can be installed anywhere. In this case, the standard version of Unlocker will be installed in the system Program Files folder.

There is no particular difference where you download the program from: in both cases, Unlocker can be downloaded for free.

How to forcefully delete an unremovable file or folder

Let's figure out together how the program works. It consists of one window. To forcefully delete a folder or file:

1. add files by clicking on the "Add" button at the bottom of the window
2. Alternatively, you can drag files or folders into the Unlocker window

In the list you will see the added files and the status - "blocked" or "not blocked". Accordingly, unblocked data can be deleted without using Unlocker. We are more interested in the second option.

So, how to delete a folder that won't be deleted?

1. Select the line with the file or folder.
2. Check the "Force" option
3. Click the "Unblock" button.
4. Unlocker will terminate processes blocking access to file operations

How to delete an undeletable file yourself without harming other processes

Advice. The Unlocker program is not omnipotent. If you add a system path, a message along the lines of "I can't delete the folder" will appear. In addition, you must soberly assess the danger of deleting files and clearly understand what you are deleting.

If the file is not deleted, it is not necessary to forcefully kill the processes. Let's say you are editing text and want to delete a certain file. Unlocker will figure out that you need to close the Word.exe (word processor) process to unlock it. As a result, you will lose the file you are currently editing. In fact, there may be other scenarios, but the essence is the same: if you kill processes en masse, this can lead to negative consequences.

The best way to delete a file from your computer is to add it to iObit Unlocker, see the processes that are interfering with the removal and terminate them correctly: close applications and save open documents. This is a definite advantage of Unlocker: you can always control the process.

Lockhunter

Developer: Crystal Rich Ltd.
Website: http://lockhunter.com/

Lockhunter is a program for deleting folders and files that are not deleted for a reason unknown to you. Often (as you can see with Unlocker) this is due to processes blocking access to the objects being deleted. Lockhunter is able to identify processes that are blocking access to files. Unlike similar tools, files and folders are deleted to the trash, so you can restore them to right moment. By the way, the main purpose of this utility is to remove viruses and malware: these harmful applications like to block access to themselves for the purpose of self-preservation.

How to force delete a folder or files using Lockhunter

This method will allow you to delete a system folder or file occupied by other processes. The technique will be useful in the accelerated destruction of viruses.

1. We indicate in the main program window the location of the folder (file) for forced deletion. The list displays the processes that are blocking the items.
2. We remove processes that block files by clicking on the UnlockIt!
3. Select the folder and press the DeleteIt! for complete removal.

Malwarebytes FileASSASSIN

Website: https://www.malwarebytes.com/fileassassin/

FileASSASSIN is a useful program for deleting files that are not deleted in the standard way, without stopping processes. Here is a list of errors that this program can solve in your favor:

• File not deleted: access denied
• Make sure the disk is not full and
• The file is currently in use
• The source or destination of the file can be used
• The file is being used by another program or user

Sysinternals Process Monitor

Website: https://technet.microsoft.com/ru-ru/sysinternals/processmonitor.aspx
Developer: Mark Russinovich

This tool is primarily intended for in-depth research. Windows processes, and can only be recommended to experienced users. However, this professional task manager monitors not only processes, but also threads, file system and Registry. If the file is not deleted, Process Monitor will help identify dependencies and then smoothly delete, for example, a system file or folder.

Removing Undeletable Files: Questions and Answers

The file is not deleted Windows folder. What to do?

Answer. If you want to remove an item with a system path from this folder, you will not be able to do this even with iObit Unlocker. As I already said, the program cannot delete system files Windows - powerful protection is triggered at the kernel level.

Files from the flash drive are not deleted. I need to download Unlocker to portable versions to a flash drive?

Answer. Not necessary. The standard version of Unlocker is quite suitable for these purposes. You can drag files into the program window, kill processes and then quietly delete the files.

I downloaded Unlocker from the official website, but the program differs from that described in the instructions. What to do, how to delete an undeletable folder?

Answer. The fact is that you downloaded another program (from the developer Emptyloop), although it has the same name. In principle, it’s not a big problem, this program has similar functionality. If you are not satisfied with it, just download iObit Unlocker from the link given at the beginning of the article.

Or documents with passwords.

Or even worse, when your information falls into the hands of not just an ordinary curious person, but professionals who know how to use the obtained data to rake money from you.

You may say, “That would never happen to me.” “I always delete all files” or “I always format the disk before it goes into the wrong hands.” Not so simple. The data still remains on the disk.

When you delete a file, it is not completely deleted. The file data remains on the disk until it is overwritten. About the same thing happens when you format HDD. Most of the data remains the same. The disc is simply completely free for recording.

To protect yourself, you need to overwrite/delete/erase all important information. Also, in the Window OS, you need to clear the “swap file”, as it may contain your confidential data.

• For data security on large hard drives, one pass of data overwriting is more than enough.

  The best practice, of course, is to regularly overwrite free disk space. I found virtually nothing on the overwritten space of the large disk. After just one overwrite with random data, PC Inspecot File Recovery found nothing useful, or found a bunch of files filled with random data.

  However, on disks small size the data can be recovered, but this largely depends on the pattern used to fill it empty space random data.

• Since cleaning everything free space takes enough big time You can only clean specific files. For specific files and folders it will be much easier and faster to overwrite information with random data. However, it should be taken into account that some media use a wear leveler at the hardware level, which may prevent normal disk cleaning.
• Currently, data cleaning programs also assume that it is necessary to erase data from the download file that is used in the Windows family. This can be done using the Ultimate program Windows Tweaker or following these instructions:

Clearing the swap file:

2. Go to the key "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management"

3. Create or change the ClearPageFileAtShutdown key of type (REG_DWORD) to the value 1

4. Restart your computer

Pagefile encryption (Vista or higher):

1. Launch Command Prompt.

2. Run the command "fsutil behavior set EncryptPagingFile 1".

3. Restart your computer.

• If you need to erase the entire disk before getting rid of it, then Darik's Boot and Nuke (DBAN) is suitable for you. This utility specially designed to clean the entire disk. But be prepared that you will have to waste time, since there will be nothing on the disk at all, including partitions.

Review of free data removal programs

Eraser is one of the most powerful tools for secure data removal

More programs for securely deleting data

• Revo Uninstaller (from the review of uninstallers): includes the "Unrecoverable Delete" utility for overwriting files, as well as the "Evidence Remover" utility for cleaning up free space.
• Recuva (from a review of file recovery programs): A program for file recovery. But it can also delete files found during recovery.
• EraserDrop: Has a good drag & drop interface. Allows you to quickly remove unnecessary files. Supports Windows 2000/XP/Vista/7.
• UltraShredder: Small program. Easy to use. And it can work from a flash drive. Supports Windows XP/2000/98/98SE.

An alternative with a slightly different plan is (DBAN). It is used to create a floppy disk (rare) or CD for automatic cleaning hard drives any computer that was booted from them. A great tool if you need to clean many computers, as well as if you quickly need to delete important information. However, in the hands of a beginner, this utility can become a dangerous weapon.

Good to know about secure data deletion

Do I need to do 35 passes?

If it's quick, then no. The current sizes of hard drives are becoming quite huge. And the chances of just finding 10Kb of your data on a 500GB disk are quite small. Therefore, several passes to fill with random data will be quite enough.

Why is it necessary to wash? Just to know what you deleted? Or that I have good manners?

• Stealing information is not paranoia. This is reality. Your information can be accessed by a virus that can easily crawl through your hard drive in search of a certain type of information. Or the person who got your hard drive can easily see what was interesting on it before.
• When I delete a file, that means I delete it!!! I don’t store it somewhere in a basket, or wait for someone to restore it. True, sometimes this is for the better.
• There are some types of programs that restore themselves after deletion, due to the fact that the file itself is not physically deleted.
• To protect confidential information from unauthorized persons.
• Some organizations require it as per their security policy. However, some of them may require more extreme actions.

Quick Guide (download free secure data deletion utilities)

eraser

		Works with any devices, including IDE, SCSI, RAID, CD-RW. Good scheduler. Rich in functionality. Good support. Quite informative reports.
		Consumes a lot system resources. Starts slower than File Shredder.

File Shredder

		Small. Easy to use. Has enough functionality to improve efficiency.
		Not everything is provided. No scheduled launch. Very small help.

CCleaner

		It works quite well and quickly. There is a portable version.
		It takes a lot of steps to finally get to the uninstall functions. Installs Yahoo Toolbar by default.