HHD Gone in 60 seconds?

[allentrace]

Thermite. Light it up and then run far away and HD will be gone very shortly depending on how much was used.

Perhaps you missed Renderman’s recommendation of Thermite a few posts and days ahead of yours.

[skroo]

Perhaps you missed Renderman’s recommendation of Thermite a few posts and days ahead of yours.

Me != Renderman ;)

[Landus]

I'm sure you could cook up/find a virus/trojan that would bring the arm that writes information onto a hard drive down on one of the disks, leaving a gash on the surface.

[skroo]

I'm sure you could cook up/find a virus/trojan that would bring the arm that writes information onto a hard drive down on one of the disks, leaving a gash on the surface.

Problem is, that's still recoverable - and that may include whatever's under the gash. Just because the drive is non-functional doesn't mean that data can't still be recovered from it.

[enigma]

Problem is, that's still recoverable - and that may include whatever's under the gash. Just because the drive is non-functional doesn't mean that data can't still be recovered from it.

break out the lab coat and clean room....

[skroo]

break out the lab coat and clean room....

Or swap the platters / armature if that's not an option. Sure, you're risking possibly damaging it further, but if what you need to recover is worth it you'll do it.

[Ridirich]

Rofl, yeah, but you pay what? 400 dollars a pop for it?

I like the idea of having a button on the side of the PC. Keep some C-4 inside. It's stable and since a pc is pretty climate controlled it won't blow up just because you tick it off. Attach a nifty timer to it for 60 seconds and simply walk out. I doubt the HD will be recovered after that, and it's even a cool mod for a pc too.

[skroo]

Rofl, yeah, but you pay what? 400 dollars a pop for it?

More than that the last time I had to have a drive recovered - it was $100 per GB with a 10GB minimum, or $3000 for the whole disk. Mind you, that was some time ago - I'm sure these numbers have changed in the three years or so since I've needed to do it.

I like the idea of having a button on the side of the PC. Keep some C-4 inside. It's stable and since a pc is pretty climate controlled it won't blow up just because you tick it off. Attach a nifty timer to it for 60 seconds and simply walk out. I doubt the HD will be recovered after that, and it's even a cool mod for a pc too.

C-4 or (as is more-easily available in Europe) Semtex.

I agree with you, but the question we have here (since we're getting somewhat off-topic) is this: are we going for secure deletion or as-complete-as-possible recovery? Both have their own sets of criteria to meet.

[Ridirich]

Anything can be recovered given the time and the software....unless you blow the disk to pieces. Even beating a hd with a hammer will still allow someone to have their date found in a cleanroom.

[MidwestMale]

i think your tech teacher is bored and wants to see who can fuck up a computer the fastest.

[MidwestMale]

hurmm my hard drive had crashed and it was a 200 gig drive it was unreadable and well un-usable until the data recovery center got done with it 1,500 dollars later over 180 gigs of information was recovered and they changed some components on the inside of the hard drive to make it work again. It was clicking hard (when it started to mess up) then it like Clicked 1 last time and it was DONE.

if its man built it can be fixed. Unless you really damage it by like taking a shot gun and using it for target practice.

[AlxRogan]

and they changed some components on the inside of the hard drive to make it work again.

You aren't actually using this drive to store data again are you?

[eddlandos]

Why not just get a strong magnet and place it next to the drive?

[TheCotMan]

Why not just get a strong magnet and place it next to the drive?

Because that if often not enough to prevent data from being recovered.

Melting the platters and while they are liquid, using a bulk eraser should work.
http://driveslag.eecue.com/ was a link that show some people doing this. [melting, not melting+bulk erasing] (Host is not responding ATM.)
Here is a google cace of it

Of course melting the drive/platters would require a sufficient pool of molten metal; A large (1 ton) vat of molten tungsten should be sufficient to liquify or possibly vaporize drive platters in less than 60 seconds.

Of course, 1 ton of molten tungsten is not very portable, and the energy bils would really suck, and I am not sure how close you would want to have a computer running near liquified tungsten.

("Liquid diamond" might work except that would be too expensive and is unrealistic for more than one reason. ;-)

[Added:]
Melting points of elements

[ghost]

If I were you i'd go for emp and a brick wall (or hammers)

and you could probably use less molten metal unless you actualy have someone ready to pull the HDs out of the molten metal (and he probably wouldnt be successful anyway)