How should I decommission my laptop?

[vwdan]

Anything that can do that (and there are military-grade apps that can) will cost you.

Why are you pushing this line of thinking - zeroing a disk is not a complex problem. You can do it with Linux with no other tools, for a start.

If it's free, assume that you are getting limited functionality.

Such as....?

Why bother paying to wipe the disk when anyone buying the machine for re-use will (if they have any sense) buy a new disk anyway. I was involved in "fixing" a situation whereby lots of bank customers' data was left on a supposedly wiped disk, which was left in a server sold on Ebay.

In which case it wasn't wiped - it was overlooked, or they simply formatted or whatever.

My point being, if you want certainty, smash the disk as much as you can, if you give away a working drive it *might* give up some of your secrets.

FWIW, I do agree with the sentiment - I remove all drives and physically destroy them. They're worth pennies and frankly it's easier and quicker. But let's not start making things up here - to date, there is no proof that it's possible to remove any data off a modern (modern being anything since, what, the early 90's) mechanical hard drive after data has been overwritten. It's really that simple. And it's also really simple to overwrite that data.

Things that dont' overwrite the data include normal formats, and simply deleting files.

[SimonMac]

Remove hard drive, drill (HDD) many many many times and sell the laptop

[NotAllThere]

So Format C: /P:10 is no good?

[CryingSheep]

Do you want the aggro, or, for the sake of a 5 min removal job, do you want certainty?

So we went from 'I have a side gig where I recover data from wiped HDDs' to 'lets just destroyed it cause proper wipe out of a HDD takes some time'!

I honestly don't understand what kind of creepy or super valuable stuff you guys keep on your laptops, but I would never even think on it twice. I wipe out my stuff with 1 pass (should take a couple of hours in an average machine with and an average sized hdd) and this will be enough to sleep well at night...

[CryingSheep]

Remove hard drive, drill (HDD) many many many times and sell the laptop

That's probably not enough... Get yourself a trip to Italy and drop it inside Etna (just to be safe)!

[CryingSheep]

So Format C: /P:10 is no good?

It is for me!

[OwlHoot]

Remove the HDD* and flog it on Ebay. ... You should get about £50 for it, but more importantly it won't be going to landfill - yet.

*Yes, I'm sure you are alone among the congregation in NOT having any porn on it, but you'd be surprised what can be retrieved from a HDD, even if it's been wiped. Take the disk out and put a hammer and chisel through it.

You'll find limited buyer interest in an HDD that has been smashed with a hammer and chisel. But if you say it is your "pet HDD", or some modern art work, then some Yank will pay a fortune for it.

[Mordac]

Why are you pushing this line of thinking - zeroing a disk is not a complex problem. You can do it with Linux with no other tools, for a start.



Such as....?



In which case it wasn't wiped - it was overlooked, or they simply formatted or whatever.



FWIW, I do agree with the sentiment - I remove all drives and physically destroy them. They're worth pennies and frankly it's easier and quicker. But let's not start making things up here - to date, there is no proof that it's possible to remove any data off a modern (modern being anything since, what, the early 90's) mechanical hard drive after data has been overwritten. It's really that simple. And it's also really simple to overwrite that data.

Things that dont' overwrite the data include normal formats, and simply deleting files.

The original advice (to LM) was intended as being to someone who may or may not be conversant with the technology you are talking about. I was suggesting the easiest option. And backing it up with my experience of what could happen when people (even IT literate folk) think they know what they're doing, and get it even slightly wrong, don't want to experience the consequences.
I know what I'm doing, and I still wouldn't send a HDD out into the world if it held anything which could be retrieved, even if I was almost certain it couldn't. It takes 5 mins to remove a drive, and depending on the size, up to 24 hours to overwrite all sectors to the point where nothing can be retrieved. I'll take the 5 min option, all day, every day...

[Mordac]

You'll find limited buyer interest in an HDD that has been smashed with a hammer and chisel. But if you say it is your "pet HDD", or some modern art work, then some Yank will pay a fortune for it.

You're so not helping...

[CryingSheep]

The original advice (to LM) was intended as being to someone who may or may not be conversant with the technology you are talking about. I was suggesting the easiest option. And backing it up with my experience of what could happen when people (even IT literate folk) think they know what they're doing, and get it even slightly wrong, don't want to experience the consequences.
I know what I'm doing, and I still wouldn't send a HDD out into the world if it held anything which could be retrieved, even if I was almost certain it couldn't. It takes 5 mins to remove a drive, and depending on the size, up to 24 hours to overwrite all sectors to the point where nothing can be retrieved. I'll take the 5 min option, all day, every day...

Well, that's a fair, reasonable opinion!