Is full formatting a disk unrecoverable?
No, data can still be recovered. If you need your disk to be unrecoverable, use DBAN.
>>53352222
>Is full formatting a disk unrecoverable?
not for the NSA
>>53352259
>>53352259
I mean for the average Joe, not for a terrorist. I know scientists can recover data that has been overwritten like 20 times, but realistically no one will bother to recover the photos from one of my 17 y.o. Hdd.
>>53352222
>5335
>33
>53
>35
>2222
>>53352222
A FULL FORMAT DOES NOT OVER WRITE ANY DATA IT JUST READS ALL SECTORS TO CHECK FOR ERRORS.
>>53352442
Really? I always thought it writes zeros all over the place?
I could recover my locally stored emails and pictures with recurva when I formatted my drive and installed a new Windows over it.
>>53352450
You're correct.
>>53352442 is just retarded
>>53352464
I think you used quick format?
>>53352466
Not really. The guy is right. >>53352442
Full format doesn't wipe. It just does a check for errors besides a the regular quick format.
>>53352450
It does not. All files can be recovered after a full format.
>>53352222
get DBAN bootable on a USB. Run 3 passes of sequential 0's and 1's. Then the 3rd run as checker pattern 0's and 1's. If you're truly truly paranoid, you can run 7 passes.
>>53352501
There is literally no point in doing more than one wipe.
>>53352442
No, a format just removes the partition data. If you don't write over it, recovering is trivial with something like TestDisk,
If you want to make the disk unrecoverable, run something to zero out the data. That'll stop most civilian/local government grade recovery software. If you're concerned about state or federal government, then the best thing to do is disassemble the drive and destroy the platters, And reevaluate your life choices that brought you to this point.
>>53352222
nice
>>53352501
The issue I'm having is that I have a really old, you could say retro laptop from 1999. I'm trying to sell it for some collector but this shit can't boot from USB, and my other laptop has no optical drive, so I can't write a Bootable CA either. I do have however a win xp install disk that I can use for full formatting.
The sectors are changed, not the data. The data on the disk is now just treated as free space. LinusTechShits has a video on it I think.
>>53352536
Well, if you put a lot of big files on it you pretty much wipe the deleted data manually.
>>53352552
Huh, you're right.
>>53352512
I do 5 passes when I'm taking a drive out of service or selling/giving it away. God only knows who I'm selling it to and how much information they know. I'm paranoid by my nature and do not want my info of any sort being pulled from the drive.
I only recommend 3 because OP asked if full format is still recoverable. It is. 3 Passes gets rid of it all and then some.
>>53352536
if the laptop supports CD boot, I think DBAN can be burned to a bootable CD as well.
Last resort would be getting a USB to floppy converter and making a bootable floppy.
Define "full format" because a format does nothing under normal conditions if you format and then fill the entire the drive with garbage data or ones/zeros then that would be sufficient.
>>53352576
I just do a Truecrypt full disk encryption. Pretty much the same thing.
Then I tend to destroy the hard drive physically.
>>53352576
Yeah, but I can't write a cd because I have no access to a CD writer at the moment.
And you're absolutely right to be paranoid. I just sold the other day an 11 y.o. Mobo to some guy, who mentioned he buys used hdds all the time and he found lots of nasty stuff. He also said he fucking saves them to another drive and has his collection of other people's private photos and videos and home pornos. Wtf.
>>53352638
And also said he looks up the people on Facebook, since he knows the name of the person he buys shit from. Guy was a fucking weirdo.
A format by default only deletes the master file table.
The data still exists on the drive but it becomes a giant mass with no definite beginning or end. If someone had specialized software that could pick out the headers of different file types they could easily reconstruct the files on the drive.
No one has ever proven that data can be recovered after a low level format (basically writing 0 to every sector). It's all theoretical.
>>53352442
You're correct.
>>53352450
and
>>53352466
are just retarded.
>>53352222
Just shred your LUKS headers and you're good.
>>53352749
Thank you, nsa guy.
Quads
One pass with random data should do it.
>>53352576
One pass is enough retard for your loli.
