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What Not To Do With Your Data

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the do-not-put-in-mouth dept.

Tiny Tim writes "Stupidity strikes! A data recovery company has revealed the dumbest data disasters it's confronted this year — including rotting bananas, smelly socks and a university professor's foolhardy application of WD-40."

5 of 319 comments (clear)

  1. Unbelievable but True Tales of Data Disaster... by vivekg · · Score: 4, Informative

    Original ontrack article - Top 10 List of Data Loss Disasters of 2006

    --
    The important thing is not to stop questioning --Albert Einstein.
  2. The real list by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    The article is a summary of an advert. The original can be found here: http://ontrack.co.uk/special/data-disasters-2006.a spx?hp=Top10_2006

  3. Just an advertisment by z_gringo · · Score: 4, Informative

    That "article" is nothing more than a commercial for using their data recovery service.

    --
    -- -- Warning. Do not stare directly at the sun.
  4. Re:Privacy aspect by eam · · Score: 5, Informative

    http://www.semshred.com/contentmgr/showdetails.php /id/680/tp/VE1HUj0xLHRpZD02NzIs

  5. Re:No. DoD grade is not 7 overwrites. by LurkerXXX · · Score: 4, Informative

    DoD grade is complete destruction by an NSA-approved procedure. They remove and shred the platters.

    Please don't perpetuate that myth.

    Actually there are several different levels of DOD grade in handling of hard drives depending on the grade of the information on them (unclassified, secret, top secret, etc).

    I refer you to the Clearing and Sanitization Matrix.

    Approved ways to 'Sanatize' (as opposed to 'Clear') hard drives include:

    "d. Overwrite all addressable locations with a character, its complement, then a random character and verify. THIS METHOD IS NOT APPROVED FOR SANITIZING MEDIA THAT CONTAINS TOP SECRET INFORMATION."

    So overwriting is indeed DOD approved, just not for "top Secret" information.

    Top Secret data may be 'Sanatized' by:

    "a. Degauss with a Type I degausser"
    "b. Degauss with a Type II degausser."

    As well as

    "m. Destroy - Disintegrate, incinerate, pulverize, shred, or melt."

    -- which seems to be the only one you are familiar with.

    Please do your research before accusing someone of perpetuating myths.