Wiping Data After HDD Crash?

[Susan]

My laptop hdd started taking 40 to boot up and minutes on end to run any
applications or display menus or files structure even.

XP Pro's Chkdsk would not complete but fail with unrecoverable loss at
around 25%. I was able to pull off 99% of the data files to my desktop
before I lost the D: partition display and the C: all its directory file
structure. Booting from the install CD XP would not even start to format
the hard drive probably because the preliminary ChkDsk before formatting
failed. I have received a the replacement hdd.

My concern is that all the data on the bad hdd is likely still there and
very readable. I need to return the bad hdd to Dell for the warranty
replacement. Is there any way at this point that I can wipe the data clean
and if there is a software program that can do this regardless of whether
the drive is formatted or whether chkdsk runs or not what is that program?
Where can I get it?

What if I say "bother" to the whole risk that someone somewhere is going to
try to read the data off the drive and even if they did, turn around and
hurt me with it? I'd like to just return the drive to Dell and not worry
about the data recovery issue. On top of this low risk the data that is
most personal was encrypted by XP Pro and those folders were corrupt
because I couldn't copy or move them before the drive went down for the
last time.

Would I have a right to return the hdd to Dell opened up with the platters
broken and the pieces missing?

Any thoughts? Thanks.

 

[cowboyz]

My laptop hdd started taking 40 to boot up and minutes on end to run
any applications or display menus or files structure even.

XP Pro's Chkdsk would not complete but fail with unrecoverable loss at
around 25%. I was able to pull off 99% of the data files to my
desktop before I lost the D: partition display and the C: all its
directory file structure. Booting from the install CD XP would not
even start to format the hard drive probably because the preliminary
ChkDsk before formatting failed. I have received a the replacement
hdd.

My concern is that all the data on the bad hdd is likely still there
and very readable. I need to return the bad hdd to Dell for the
warranty replacement. Is there any way at this point that I can wipe
the data clean and if there is a software program that can do this
regardless of whether the drive is formatted or whether chkdsk runs
or not what is that program? Where can I get it?

What if I say "bother" to the whole risk that someone somewhere is
going to try to read the data off the drive and even if they did,
turn around and hurt me with it? I'd like to just return the drive
to Dell and not worry about the data recovery issue. On top of this
low risk the data that is most personal was encrypted by XP Pro and
those folders were corrupt because I couldn't copy or move them
before the drive went down for the last time.

Would I have a right to return the hdd to Dell opened up with the
platters broken and the pieces missing?

Any thoughts? Thanks.

If the data is *that* important then it may pay not to return it and not
claim the waarenty. You don't *have* to claim it under warrenty. You
could just buy another HD and put it in and trash the other one.

 

[Martin G.1.0]

1) Take hammer, smash drive.
2) Go buy new drive.
3) Stop keeping naked pictures of yourself on hard drive.
;-)

 

[John]

I am certainly not an expert on these things, but I wouldn't worry too much
about it. I don't think the service people have the spare time to search
through your disk for confidential information.

However, you can try...
If you have access to an old system, load a W98 recovery disk and run FDISK.
(Just for fun, I checked XP and couldn't find it there.) Delete the
partitions and try formating again. Might help, can't hurt.

I don't have any data vital enough to bother vandalizing the disks.
Presumably their service policy excludes deliberate damage. However, you
might have such data, and it might be worth the couple hundred to keep it
secret.

 

[John Doe]

Would I have a right to return the hdd to Dell opened up with the
platters broken and the pieces missing?

No.

 

[Kill Bill]

I am certainly not an expert on these things, but I wouldn't worry too much
about it. I don't think the service people have the spare time to search
through your disk for confidential information.

However, you can try...
If you have access to an old system, load a W98 recovery disk and run
FDISK. (Just for fun, I checked XP and couldn't find it there.) Delete
the partitions and try formating again. Might help, can't hurt.

I don't have any data vital enough to bother vandalizing the disks.
Presumably their service policy excludes deliberate damage. However, you
might have such data, and it might be worth the couple hundred to keep it
secret.

http://www.killdisk.com/

 

[Susan]

http://www.killdisk.com/

Ah, Kill Disk looks interesting. I'm trying the free download version now.
I burned an ISO CD. This is going to take a while. I suppose for it to
write block 00 for 40 GB doesn't require ChkDsk integrity?

Thanks.

 

[Sayso_Takewashi]

Ah, Kill Disk looks interesting. I'm trying the free download version
now. I burned an ISO CD. This is going to take a while. I suppose for
it to write block 00 for 40 GB doesn't require ChkDsk integrity?

Thought about this issue some time ago.
What will happen with my data,if i sent the harddisk for warranty
replacement...

Some People from a University tried a test drive:They bought around 100
Harddrives from Ebay Sellers and could read all the personal data....

So,i will never sent in a disk for replacement or only if i could wipe the
disk one week long...They are many (free) "wipe-programms" on the net,if you
really have to send in or to sell your harddisk sometime....

 

[Al Dykes]

Thought about this issue some time ago.
What will happen with my data,if i sent the harddisk for warranty
replacement...

Some People from a University tried a test drive:They bought around 100
Harddrives from Ebay Sellers and could read all the personal data....

So,i will never sent in a disk for replacement or only if i could wipe the
disk one week long...They are many (free) "wipe-programms" on the net,if you
really have to send in or to sell your harddisk sometime....

No you don't.

If your data and time are worth more than the cost of a new disk ($150
or less) the decision should be obvious. Smash the disk with a
heavy hammer and put it in the trash.

IMO the "wipe" programs are unnecesary. Doing as little as a single
FORMAT pass on your disk will put your data out of reach of anyone
other than the Government agenies willing to dedicate scarce and
valuable laboratory time to reading your disk, or someone willing to
write a very big check to a data recovery service that does forensics
work, like Ontrack.

 

[Bass]

Ah, Kill Disk looks interesting. I'm trying the free download version now.
I burned an ISO CD. This is going to take a while. I suppose for it to
write block 00 for 40 GB doesn't require ChkDsk integrity?

Thanks.

Dban does the same thing and is free. Runs off a single floppy.

http://dban.sourceforge.net/

 

[Susan]

IMO the "wipe" programs are unnecessary. Doing as little as a single
FORMAT pass on your disk will put your data out of reach of anyone
other than the Government agencies willing to dedicate scarce and
valuable laboratory time to reading your disk, or someone willing to
write a very big check to a data recovery service that does forensics
work, like Ontrack.

I couldn't Format because ChkDsk failed to finish every time which aborts
Format so I settled for a single pass of 00s using Kill Disk off the
bootable CD ISO. Seemed to work great though it took five or six hours,
which leaves me feeling at least that it did a better job of wiping data
off then a Full Format would do?

Anyway, the task is done and the HDD is back at Dell by now for warranty
credit. The new drive works fine and I am busy reconfiguring everything on
it while playing Half-Life on my other machine.

Susan