Tip #3154 - SuperShredder
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SuperShredder
When you delete a
file in Windows, it’s gone forever, right? No, that would be wrong!
All that Windows does
is delete the "pointer" to where the file was on your hard disk.
It then allows that space to be used by another file at a later date.
(Learn more here).
Well, for the people
who know what to do (and there are many), it is an easy job to locate
that file you deleted and recreate it so it can still be read.
Now, if the file is
a chatty letter to your aunt about last year’s holidays, then there's
no problem, but what if it's a file containing your credit card number,
passwords for various Web sites or any confidential financial information
about your company? Then it becomes a problem.
So, the question is:
“What can I do to ensure that when I delete a file, it really is
gone for good”?
And the answer is:
You need a file shredder.
Lucky for you, I
know one of the best, especially in view of the price, which is free!
The one I am talking about it called SuperShredder.
Let’s start
by going to the Web site, which you can find here.
Go ahead and download yourself a copy of the program.
Install the program
where you find suitable (just accept all the offered defaults if you are
uncertain).
During the installation
process, you will be asked if you want to register the program. As this
is free , it basically just means that you will be notified when any updates
are issued. It’s probably a good idea to do this (see screenshots
below).
After that, you will
be presented with the screen below, which gives you the instructions you
need to complete this tip! Print them out and save them for future reference
if you want.
Now, let’s start
to use the SuperShredder.
Go to Start,
All Programs, AnalogX, SuperShredder
and then click on the SuperShredder icon.
This is the first
screen you will see and it is the main operations center for your work
with this program.
Here are the main
features, which are labeled in the image above:
Config (1)
- This is where you set the program to perform as you want it to.
Operations
(2) - Here you can select the type of "shredding" you
want to be done.
Select file
(3) - This will open up an Explorer window for you to select
the file to be deleted.
Done (4)
- I think this one speaks for itself!
Lastly, you have Drag
Files Onto Here (5). This enables you to do
exactly what it says. You can short circuit the selection process if you
have a file you want to be shredded immediately.
Let’s take a
closer look at some of these options now (in most cases, there are a multitude
of options in each section, which could be confusing, but you won’t
go far wrong if you accept the defaults offered. You can always change
things later when you get a bit more experienced if you choose to do so).
Config (1)
Clicking this will
produce the following screen:
Please notice that
all of the boxes, numbered from one to six on the above screenshot, can
be toggled from Enabled to Disabled
and back again just by clicking on the box itself. For example, where
it says “Enabled” or “Disabled.”
In brief, you can
decide whether or not to (1) have SuperShredder always on top, (2) have
it minimized to the tray, (3) if you want to delete a whole directory
and whether or not to ask for confirmation, (4) the number of passes when
shredding one to five is sufficient; the more passes, the longer it takes),
(5) to show the progress visibly on the screen or (6) whether you want
to be asked for a confirmation of the file deletion before proceeding.
The final button (7)
is a very useful one since you can elect to have SuperShredder included
on the list of shortcuts when you right click the mouse on the file in
question. With this, you can delete files "on the fly" as they
are.
Operations
(2)
This is where you
decide what type of shredding you want to be done. There are a whole range
of different procedures and algorithms that can be used, but for today,
we will just accept the ones shown here by default.
By clicking on the
ones you want, they can be performed in the order of priority indicated
(for example, 1, 2 then 3, etc). Today, we will click on all three.
(Other operational
methods are provided by SuperShredder and can be loaded by hitting the
Import button and selecting from the list appearing (see
next screen), but let’s keep it simple to start with and just use
what we have here. This way is 100 percent safer than what most people
have probably been doing up until now anyway!)
Select File
(3)
Clicking on this button
will open an Explorer type screen (see below), enabling you to select
the file you want to delete.
(You will note that
a confirmation screen has also popped up here since we elected to have
a confirmation on files enabled previously).
That is just about
that. It's not at all difficult, it's very secure and at an affordable
cost! What more could you want?!
If, by any chance,
you want to go deeper into the file shredding and the various algorithms
in use, a good starting point is this Web
site on file wiping. Run with it!
~ David Woodford
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