Short review on non-software methods of destruction of the information on hard drives.

Sometimes, when the highest reliability is needed, it’s using mechanical and other methods of destruction of the information, when HDD is breaking as oneself.  

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1.        Mechanical action. Crushing of the carrier passed through the shredder. HDD so collapses mechanically to exclude an opportunity of perusal of the information from its working disks in any way. There is a danger at this method, there can be fragments after crushing, large enough to restore the information in laboratory conditions.

Opening of the case in a working premise (outside of a pure room) leads to pollution of plates and HDD conclusion out of operation. In modern HDD a dust, as a sandpaper, erases a working layer up to a basis.

Frequently methods of drilling of apertures used in practice and impacts by a hammer on a drive actually at all do not destroy or destroy only a small part of the information.

2.        Thermal. Heating of the carrier to temperature of fusion in special furnaces. At this way the guarantee of destruction of the information becomes at heating the carrier up to temperature 800-1000C. In this case the information becomes absolutely non-restorable on the whole complex of the reasons. Such way of destruction of the information can be recommended for the carriers containing the state secret.

A fire in a working premise, where a personal computer is, or burning HDD does not lead to destruct of the information.

3.        Pyrotechnic. Destruction of the carrier by explosion.

4.        Metal-thermic. Destruction of the disk substrate, directly magnetic covered, by heat self-spreading high-temperature synthesis. Thus on a substrate the special thermal layer is rendered.

5.        Chemical. Destruction of a working layer or a basis of the carrier chemically excited environments.

6.        Radiating. Destruction of the carrier ionized radiation.

One of them are ecologically unsafe, others can provide high reliability of destruction of the information, but demand so specific and expensive equipment, which is presumed by only single corporate users. In all these methods there is no opportunity of reuse HDD. That’s why we have to back to software methods of data destruction and overview it.  

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