When you run this tool for the first time, it gives you an option to either install it on your computer or run it as a portable application. It supports Windows 11, 10, 8.1, 8, 7, Vista and XP. You can also use it from the context menu in Windows Explorer.įreeraser creates a Trash icon on the Desktop where you may drag and drop your files to completely wipe out their traces. The application can also print a log of operations. It supports various file shredding methods- NATO Standard, MS Cipher, Write Zero, among others. Shredding private information that may not be required in the future helps businesses prevent leaking of private data and permanent damage to the company’s reputation. Businesses may use data shredding applications to completely wipe out past customer information to comply with data privacy laws & regulations. Many businesses have legal obligations to deal with a past customer’s private data collected during the purchase, medical claims, KYC, and other occasions.Cyber criminals may use your name, contact details, passport scan copies to register for credit cards, online services, and commit various kinds of monetary fraud. Your digital files with personal data can be abused by identity thieves.This makes the original information in your file completely unrecoverable even with modern data recovery tools. Therefore, if someone gains access to your hard disk and attempts to recover a deleted file, no real information can be found in that file. Thus, your confidential document may still be accessible to your computer’s new owner, unauthorized individuals or anyone with moderate technical proficiency.Ī file shredder overwrites the contents of your deleted files with zeroes and ones. There is no exact way to know when that may happen. The actual file continues to exist on your device until some other file overwrites it. When a user gives the delete command, your operating system only deletes the references pointing to that file.
Your file can still be recovered using specialized data recovery tools. In Windows and most other operating systems, when you delete a file from the Recycle Bin, it is not permanently gone. Why Do You Need a File Shredder in the First Place? As such, modern digital shredders are increasingly used to completely wipe out information and make the data unreadable. In this age of digitalization and technological advancement, confidential information is more likely to be stored on hard drives rather than papers. They helped individuals, businesses, Governments and even criminals to make it impossible for unwanted people to read or extract confidential information. They were used for over a century to destroy confidential paper documents and turn the paper into confetti.