Re: PC disk wipe software

[Brian Davis <bdavis@dg.thepoint.net>]

On Tue, 10 Oct 1995, Bill Stewart wrote:

> >There has been considerable discussion on the MCIP list about how most
> >*Mac* programs that purport to do this, like Burn, for example, leave stuff
> >over in disk blocks. My understanding is that this is not a trivial
> >problem, and it occurs in MUSH-DOS as well....
> 
> Doing it _right_ is not a trivial job.  Consider disk controllers that
> map out bad blocks so the OS never needs to see them - if you're trying
> to remove highly classified data, the fact that Diskwipe won't ever see them
> might be a serious problem, even if it is close enough for government work.

FYI the Justice Department requires degaussing a hard drive before it can 
be declared surplus ...

EBD


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