How to Delete PC Files Permanently

When it comes to deleting computer files, the common misconception is that it is gone after one deletes it and empties the recycle bin. Although this action erases the file from the directory, it is not completely gone. Deleting the file only removes the way you access it, removing its reference from the Master File Table where all files are mapped. However, the actual data is still hidden in your hard drive and can be recovered. This advantage can easily become a problem if you are trying to delete locked, undeletable, sensitive files or if someone gets a hold of your computer and tries to recover sensitive information that you wanted to erase. Here are a few tips on how to delete computer files permanently.

Download a secure delete utilities program. This is the easiest way to delete files permanently form your hard drive. There are many that you can download such as Sure Delete, File Assassin, Evidence Eliminator or Deletor. Although they have different features, the common process is the software encrypts the file you want to delete, locate all its traces, and deletes it. The encryption is part of a failsafe, just in case traces of the file escapes deletion, it will be unreadable if someone tries to access it.

Defragmenting your hard drive is another way to permanently delete files. After you have deleted your files the normal way and emptied your recycle bin, defragmenting rearranges the files on your hard drive, switches them around, compacts them and in a way, overrides the spaces the removed files have taken. The downside of this method is that you have to Defragment a couple of times in order to make sure that traces of the deleted files are really removed.

Overwrite your hard drive with large files. This option is the most time consuming, but is more effective than defragmenting. What you do is after deleting the file and emptying the recycle bin, you need to look for a large, non-sensitive, file in your drive. It should be around 1 gigabyte or larger, then make several copies of it on your had drive until you get a prompt from your drive saying that the disk is full and you can no longer copy. Then using the normal delete method, delete all the copied files. What this does is overwrite the space of your sensitive files you wanted to permanently delete. This method can cause memory concerns and can also destabilize your data, so you need to use it with caution.

Among the three methods, using a secure delete utilities program is still the most recommended. This ensures that your data is safely removed without harming your other files and computer processes. Defragmenting is also a practice that is recommended at least once every quarter, just to keep your computer running smoothly. If you are throwing away your hard drive and want to erase data on it in try running a strong magnet on the surface of the drive, this should clean it right out and remove all data.

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