Every day we offer FREE licensed software you’d have to buy otherwise.
1-abc.net File Washer 6 was available as a giveaway on November 7, 2013!
File Washer helps users ro erase files completely so that they can never be recovered again. You can switch between 11 different deleting methods, and all of them overwrite your old file before removing so the only thing that could ever be recovered will be senseless data.
One of these deleting procedures is the famous “Gutman Method”, that probably is one of the best ways to erase data by overwriting it 35 times.
Also there was added a special fun feature: a deleting method that overwrites the files you want to delete with another file. So whenever someone tries to reverse the wiping, he only gets the file you want him to receive.
Note that the 5 best improvement ideas will be rewarded with a full-functioning life-time licence code of Security Box. Use Idea Informer widget to submit your feedback and do not forget to fill in your name and e-mail – otherwise the Developer will not be able to contact you in case you are the one to win!
Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8; CPU 300 MHz; RAM 32MB; disk space 10MB
9.53 MB
$19.99
There are many programs to protect your privacy and system security, but this one combines 6 fantastic security tools in one easy-to-use collection. Six fast modules to improve your data security will guide you step by step on your way to a safer system! Upgrade offer from within 1-abc.net File Washer 6 with discount! Special upgrade price for GOTD users: $26.66 instead of $39.99 (regular price).
To Giovanni.
I think, you are way too sensitive and behave like a cry baby.
XP-man raised very important issue, and as a matter of fact he deserves credit for that. Why do you take everything so personally? Feeling insecure? It was actually you who attacked XP-man. Personally! And without any reason whatsoever. You certainly owe him an apology.
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I think shredders are useful tools especially if files that might be maleware - had problems with some that antivirus had problems with, so took shredders to them! If one shredder didn't worked tried another! I found some that for some files - different shredders worked and some didn't, so having more then one is sometimes useful! As to this one time will be to be needed to evaluate it in comparesion yo other shredders I got from gotd! thanks
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#17 papin
In my first comment #2 I stated that it is supposed to be possible to erase data on a modern drive because of the density.
The real problem is I have no method of testing the validity of this statement with the tools available to me.
Because of the damage that theft of personal information can cause in your life, solution number 5 is an obvious choice to take.
And choice number 5 is, “physical destruction of the drive,” you know this is secure!
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Just a reminder that multiple overwrites on your hard drive such as the Gutman Method (35 overwrites?) will result in increased wear on the drive, thus shortening it's life. Maybe a better alternative is to use encryption for all your data then a simple one-pass overwrite after deleting the file(s)? Well-known free software such as CCleaner can handle 1 to 3 overwrites, i think.
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Giovanni and XP-Man.
Although today's give away, may not suit everyone, any recommendations as to alternative choices, is always welcomed. No one program, will (ever) fit everyone's needs, and that's why reading your opinion(s), good, bad or indifferent, is constructive. If you can include a program 'you feel' is worthwhile , please mention it, so us readers can compare it's usefulness. (and this goes for any poster)
Secondly. If you people are so worried about the NSA getting your secret information, maybe, your doing something the NSA, should be, concerned with?
If anyone thinks they're going to pick up a FREE program to evade the NSA's capabilities, they're either delusional or smoking too much crack. Let's get real. Today's giveaway is a small way to ease tracks from prying eyes of household members, not from a government entity like the NSA.
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#3 Giovanni and #6 XP-Man
I think that you both often have very helpful comments and suggestions, but I for one take any comment or suggestion with caution; therefore, I’m glad whenever someone elaborates on what someone else said, even if it might seem like an attack. This helps me to further judge if a particular comment, suggestion, and/or recommended program(s) would be helpful and worth my time investigating for myself or not.
Regarding the Gutman’s method, up until your comments today, I had never even heard of it, so any and all sources of knowledge and information are appreciated, so that I can begin to understand this topic further and become more informed. Maybe I will come to your same conclusion, and maybe not, but at least you both took the time to try to help us and the software vendor.
Maybe things could be said differently to avoid offenses, but I just wanted you to know that I’m glad for comments and suggestions such as yours, so please don’t feel like you’re being attacked.
Kind regards
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@Giovanni: I have always ignored those people who cannot handle another person's OPINION, and those same people will never TRY, TEST, OR RESEARCH another idea or software. WHY? They are either close-minded, or they think they know it all.
ME, I appreciate your suggestions and they are SUGGESTIONS that no is forcing anyone to accept. IT'S CALLED FREE ENTERPRISE AND/OR CAPITALISM, WHICH SOME PEOPLE JUST PLAIN HATE. Me, I LOVE IT AND HATE SOCIALISM BECAUSE SOCIALISM HAS ONLY 1 POINT OF VIEW - THEIRS ONLY.
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#9 Giovanni
Your comment really surprised me as I only pointed out that the GUTMAN wipe wasn't really worth doing for the simple reason that it takes so long and offers no gain on modern drives.
I didn't really consider it technical as the procedure he recommended is a random write which many programs of this type include in their choice.
My second link was only posted because it did some simple discussion on the methods used to erase data and not in competition with your normally excellent choices.
#18 tc1uscg
If you have no luck with Gpg4Win, PGP is still available but I believe it is no longer free. If you wish to study this further looking under PGP will be much more productive, Gpg4Win is a relatively new kid on the block.
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#15 - XP-Man. Gpg4Win looks looks. I'm currently in a computer forensics class and we are about to dive in recovering encrypted software and manipulating the bits on the disk to recover data (readable) just using basic disk tools (aka, HxD and Winhex for example). Not to get into details but inital tests are time consuming but doable. Looking at your program, the screen shots show it's in german. I've not install this app yet (but will in my virtual lab machine)but if it's only in german, I'm not going to bother. TU
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Apparently it's not enough to just overwrite x times the data. In order to confuse forensic tools, random overwriting is probably the best that can be done. If you google a bit, you'll find the Gutman's method has become obsolete.
One problem to solve is cleaning the system's metafiles:
1. On NTFS partitions, writing whitespace once with CCleaner rewrites the MFT (this method can be used to help defrag a drive) and its copy ($MFTMirr).
2. Do a low-level format and check whether testdisk finds leftovers.
3. Change the partitioning: new sizes, number of partitions, other type. Write a new file (random bytes) the size of the partition.
4. Defrag. Do this after you delete the cache files (pagefile.sys, hiberfil.sys). Then, reboot and recreate the cache files.
4. Running the free Microsoft's SDelete won't harm too (allows secure deletion of files encrypted with EFS).
5. Buy another disk, and physically destroy the old one. This method might be faster and cheaper (depending on how much you make an hour) than secure (?) deleting. This is the method recommended by the US government and... me, lol!
6. Create a small program (batch, python...) that writes randomly random files until all free space is full. Easy (and fun) to program.
No need to spend a dime on this kind of job.
***
#7: "It’s tough making a living being a developer"
Making a living can be difficult for any kind of business. The only way to convince people to buy, or at least try your product, is to provide added value. Or, as any brick-and-mortar business, situated in a strategic location ---which is not enough though.
giveawayoftheday.com is one of these strategic locations. As a potential buyer in this market place, I will never be sorry for the sellers here if they fail to reach their goals because their products have no added value whatsoever.
I'd rather say: "it's tough making good software". And I'd add: "Don't reinvent the wheel, pleeeease !"
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#9 mike
It is still possible to encrypt your data that is safe from the meddling of the NSA.
The encryption method is based on PGP and for Windows is available as Gpg4win (also open source) at the following link:-
http://www.fileparade.com/listing/122280/Gpg4win?gclid=CL_u49vf0roCFafMtAodxnUAKw
Its main disadvantage is it's not particularly user-friendly.
Its advantages are the key to decrypt the information is never passed to a third party, rather than passwords it uses a phrase often stored in the form of a file, there is still no known method of cracking encrypted information.
A simple way of looking at its function is if you imagine a safe which has two locks, the first key is available to anyone to lock the safe, this key will only lock the safe it will not unlock it. This key is called the public key.
A second key owned by the recipient of the safes contents, the private key, will unlock the safe and is never given to anyone.
To send an encrypted message to someone they first have to send you their public key, and you can also use this method to encrypt your drive.
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Now Google will know you were trying to hide something,
and keep a record of it forever!
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I thought it was interesting this morning that when I Googled on [w/out quotes] "secure data erasure" I got 145,000 results, "data erasure" = 888,000, while "forensic data recovery" yielded 3,060,000 -- it would seem there are more people interested in recovering your data than there are people worried about stopping that from happening. At any rate some may find the following couple of links useful...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_erasure
http://arstechnica.com/security/2011/03/ask-ars-how-can-i-safely-erase-the-data-from-my-ssd-drive/
One opinion that will crop up a lot if/when you research destroying &/or recovering data, is that encrypting a drive generally works pretty well, as long as you can make sure no one gets the key. Granted the NSA [& similar] can probably get through that encryption, but from what we've been reading in the news there's a good chance that if they really wanted that data, they already had it before you got rid of the key to prevent access. ;)
So why use File Washer? If you follow the link at the top of this page to http://www.1-abc.net/0017/index.htm there's a list of the handy features like moving data to a new folder [I would assume on a different storage device] & automatically erasing the old folder. Overwriting data isn't that hard -- that's why there's so many apps that offer that feature, probably including your security software -- so the difference between app X & app Y is in the value-added stuff & sometimes ease of use [e.g. the popular app Eraser bugs me by wanting to always stay running in the tray].
Do Note: While erasing files may be a step in removing the tracks of what you've been doing, your history is stored all over the place, in the registry, in log files, possibly in logs & such on your ISP's servers & so on. If that's the reason behind wanting to erase files you'd be better off researching staying anonymous, removing all tracks, VMs, Truecrypt, VPNs etc. Researching data forensics can point out not just what recovery's possible, but common.
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Recovery programs have been offered on GOTD which have only had moderate success recovering files which have been deleted no more than once. What recovery programs claim to recover files that have been, deleted, overwritten, dissected and manipulated by one form or another several times or even had the entire HD reformatted? This way so I can once and for all be confident that my file has been securely deleted?
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My comment is not about the program but in fact about the company name:
(1-abc.net), I thick you have to choose a better trade name.
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Just use derricks nuke and boot to wpe the drive.
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Free apps to clean & scrub files and empty disk space
BleachBit http://bleachbit.sourceforge.net/
CCleaner http://www.piriform.com/ccleaner
There's also an extension for CCleaner to find and remove garbage files created by apps. CCenhancer http://singularlabs.com/software/ccenhancer/
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# 6. XP MAN
No offense meant for you, but I have a feeling that most of your comments here are meant to tarnish my reputation or at least warn people that my free alternatives are just crap (it happened with other GAOTD in the past as well)....and I wonder why (I'm not earning any money for that...so relax...LOL!!)!
Of course, criticisms to my comments are allowed and very much welcome, as long as they are sensible and constructive: for instance, whenever you snub a FREE GEM of mine, why not add a better one saying why your freebie is better than mine? So far you never did that!
In this case those article you mentioned in your comment are mainly addressed to very advanced professional PC users and for Corporate Environment as well...
99% of us here are just AVERAGE HOME USERS...come on...
So the GUTMAN method is more than enough for us!
But to settle things once and for all, just use my third recommendation (Portable Blank And Secure), which does not use Gutmann standard (and the developer explains why he didn't implement it in his short blurb).
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This is an interesting little article and it could save you time when you're trying to clear your old files from being recovered.
**************************
Is the Gutmann method the best method?
No because Gutmann says it no longer is the best…
http://www.dban.org/node/40
*************************
The following article compares a number of free and some portable file erasing programs.
Learn How to Securely Delete Files in Windows
http://www.howtogeek.com/72130/
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Downloaded and installed no problem, but 50 min on still haven't received an email. Can't be bothered waiting for an email that probably won't arrive and uninstalled. Had a quick look at the program and didn't find anything that made it any better than any of the free alternatives available. First attempt at registering got a message saying my email was not valid (checked spelling and it was ok) second attempt ok, but no email.
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Just an ordinary File shredder as many others...
It's OK but 20 bucks opss sorry 19.99 $ for this?
Come on please....let's be serious!!
http://www.dban.org
http://www.puransoftware.com/Wipe-Disk.html (==> Can even delete the files system)
http://hddguru.com/software/HDD-LLF-Low-Level-Format-Tool
And to completely erase individual files and folders, rather than an entire HD:
* (Portable) Privazer
http://privazer.com
* Portable Files Terminator
Great FREE & PORTABLE Italian app designed to completely delete for good any sensitive data stored in your PC, by using the following 8 shredding methods:
One pass Pseudorandom
British HMG IS5
Two pass Russian GOST P50739-95
Three pass US DoD 5220.22M
Seven pass German VSITR
Canadian RCPM TSSIT OPS-II
Bruce Schneier
35-pass Peter Gutmann
http://elefantsoftware.weebly.com/files-terminator.html
* (Portable) Blank And Secure
http://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Microsoft/BlankAndSecure
HINT to the developer: How about focusing on different kind of apps??
My 2 cents....
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Because of the data density of modern hard drives it is apparently much easier to erase the residue of old files.
It is worth checking the effectiveness of any erase program with a decent recovery program just be on the safe side.
Personally in the past the only program I have used to do this is the following:-
http://sourceforge.net/projects/eraser/
It gets a good name and it's free!
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Pros
*Securely erase files and folders
*Supports 11 secure deletion algorithms
*Can add an entry into right-click context menu for easy access to 1-abc.net File Washer
*Supports batch processing
Cons
*Does not support drag + drop
Free Alternatives
Review of best free secure file and folder erasing programs for Windows
Final Verdict
Click here for final verdict and full review
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