free space wipe

A concerned young man with large glasses holding a pink eraser beside a laptop. The laptop screen displays the Windows logo and icons of a folder, a document, and a trash can. The background is warm-toned, and there's a cup of pencils on the desk.

How Can I Securely Delete Everything Except the Operating System?

Before giving away a machine or returning a loaner, it’s important to remove your personal information from it. That may be both harder and easier than you think. I’ll show you where traditional suggestions fail, and what you need to do instead.

A surreal scene showing a standing maintenance person using a floor polisher on a giant hard disk platter. The maintenance worker, dressed in a standard blue jumpsuit and safety shoes, is actively operating the large, mechanical floor polisher.

How Often Should I Wipe Hard Drive Free Space?

Free-space wiping prevents the recovery of deleted files. Whether you need to do it, or how often, depends on how interesting your data is.

Permanently Delete File

Tip of the Day: Permanently Delete a File

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CCleaner Drive Wiper

Can I Use a Backup Image to Wipe Free Space?

There’s an app for that! An easy combination of programs can help you clean a computer before you sell it or give it away.

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