Data recovery how good is it?

edscdk · 23 Jun 2009 at 14:46

I was jsut having a discussion with someone at work,

I recon that if a hard drive platter if not either erased or dammaged to some degree that data can be read from it given enough time / money - IE the FBI / CIA or possibly other well funded organisations

Im not arguing that its easy or that an average data recovery company could do it but assuming the actual segment of drive platter containing the file is intact the government could if they wanted to read that data..

he thinks that the drives are so finley tuned that as soon as the drive is a bit smashed up its not possible to ever get the data back (if set about it with a hammer and no one will ever be able to get the data back)

Does anyone know who is right?

bledd · 23 Jun 2009 at 14:53

wait, what kind of hammer?

Greebo · 23 Jun 2009 at 16:38

we always use the oxy acetylene torch at work to get rid of ours

Rroff · 23 Jun 2009 at 17:08

Depends...

Doesn't take _that_ high end a setup to read fragments of data back off even a part of a platter - so if you took a HDD with data stored on it, opened it up and managed to use a hammer to break the platter into several pieces - a good amount of the data would still be recoverable - maybe not by joe public or your avg. PC "Tech" tho.

death_looms · 24 Jun 2009 at 15:29

I'd defo use a torch. Besides scorching the drive, the stability of a bit is dependent on the temperature, so at higher temps data corruption probability is MUCH higher.

Also, if it's a multi-platter drive, its nigh on impossible to re-align the platters if they've been displaced..... HAMMER TIME!

PiKe · 24 Jun 2009 at 15:32

acid bath.

user1453 · 24 Jun 2009 at 16:02

I reackon a nuclear fision device woult render the data unreadable, slight colateral damage though

I'd suggest ussing a shred program then removing the disks , putting theme in a strong oscilating electromagnetic field then smashing it to bits then burning it just to be sure

Rikki · 24 Jun 2009 at 16:03

thermite

miniyazz · 24 Jun 2009 at 19:03

Rikki said:
thermite

This. Plus then you can reform the molten metal into a middle finger, before etching onto it some choice obscenities about big brother governments trying to get your data now, the so-and-sos

Deadude · 24 Jun 2009 at 21:14

I remember seeing a few good videos involving thermite on youtube how difficult is it to get hold of

?

miniyazz · 24 Jun 2009 at 23:49

Well I doubt you can buy it easily ready-to-go. But it's quite easy to make.. IIRC, you need iron oxide (rust), aluminium, and magnesium. The rust and aluminium should be powder/filings for maximum surface area, the magnesium - just a strip of ribbon or something. Light the magnesium but don't look directly at it, you'll blind yourself. Use the magnesium to light the iron/aluminum mixture. I can't remember the ratio they should be in though, you'll want to look it up somewhere

Great fun when it works, don't do it indoors or you'll set off the fire alarm.. and stand back, there'll be some fireworks

bledd · 25 Jun 2009 at 12:12

Deadude said:
I remember seeing a few good videos involving thermite on youtube how difficult is it to get hold of ?

I hope it's very difficult to get hold of!

ecat · 25 Jun 2009 at 12:41

Didn't Adam Hart-Davis have a diy thermite guide in one of his shows ?

I think HD platters are aluminium these days, no longer the glass of old ? Smashing, while fun my be ineffective, acid should work a treat

Dist · 25 Jun 2009 at 13:13

The problem with DIY thermite is that it can be difficult to ignite. Even with magnesium there is not garuntee that it will correctly ignite, it is possible for the metal power to glow red hot and still not be enough. This is why proper thermite, design for military use, has additional substances designed to make the thermite easier to ignite.

For a serious way to destroy data, just use a data shredder type program, and set it to 10 steps. That way the only possible way to read the data (and even then it might not work) is an electron microscope. Add to that a hammer, and it would simply be too costly to try and recover the data when chances are only small fragments of data can be found.

Ucof · 25 Jun 2009 at 13:20

Smash the hard drive into pieces to get to the platters, then run a magnet over them, then scratch the hell out of them with a chisel or other sharp instrument.

Then melt them into one solid lump of metal.

In other words, your friend is wrong and you are right, a hard drive can be taken apart, taken into a clean room then reassembled using the platters and a new hard drive case.

3t3P · 26 Jun 2009 at 09:30

There are companies that use industrial shredders to mash up things like bowling balls, tires and HD's. There are some vids about they are pretty entertaining: