Who will be the last HD maker down the road?

[Eric Smith]

On 03/08/2011 10:15 AM, Richard wrote:
 > Flash memory is problematic for secure data. Basically, its nearly
 > impossible to securely erase a file from flash based disks.

That used to be true, but is not any longer.  These days most drives, 
both flash and rotating, implement "secure erase" commands which tell 
the drive's embedded controller to erase not just the logical blocks, 
but also any spared-out blocks that may contain residual user data.

Of course, for classified data and any other data that needs to be 
secure from even extremely well-funded adversaries (i.e., intelligence 
agencies), physical destruction is still the only satisfactory erasure 
method.  But telling the flash drive to do a secure erase should be good 
enough to keep even the commercial data recovery companies from being 
able to extract your credit card numbers, etc.

Of course, there's no guarantee that the vendor implemented the secure 
erase correctly, just as there is no guarantee that they've implemented 
anything else correctly.  You have to judge for yourself how valuable 
the information you're trying to erase is, and base your decision on that.

Eric