Summary: Read this blog to know how to erase data from a USB flash drive permanently. We’ve shared the best DIY methods to wipe your USB drive data completely. You can also opt for reliable data eraser software, such as Stellar File Eraser, to erase data beyond recovery.
When we talk about erasing data from any storage media, we often refer to formatting or deleting the files and folders from the storage media. However, data erasure essentially refers to deletion of data via overwriting with a pattern of 0s and 1s whereas, no overwriting is performed when you format or delete a drive or file. Overwriting the data destroys it permanently from the storage media. There are two ways in which one can permanently delete data from a USB Flash drive, namely by?
- Erasing Individual or Selected files and folders
- Wiping off an entire storage drive with a data erasure algorithm
Wiping is same as date erasure, but is done on a wider scale. When we say wipe, it refers to erasing the entire partition or disk volume, and not just one or two files. Wiping erases everything from the storage media permanently. It also erases previously deleted data, making its recovery impossible.
To erase or permanently deleted data from USB Flash drive, you can use the following methods:
- A Data Erasure Tool (To be brought on top)
Using CMD for data erasure is a bit tricky and you may accidentally end up deleting crucial files and folders (via typos). Therefore, use a secure data erasure software like Stellar File Eraser, which lets you wipe the entire drive with the help of 3 international data erasure algorithms (selected one at a time) such as DoD 5220.22-M
Follow these steps to erase your USB drive with Stellar File Eraser software:
- Install and run Stellar File Eraser after connecting your USB drive to the PC
- Go to ?Settings?. Select the data erasure algorithm and verification method from the respective dropdowns
- Go to Home and then click Erase Deleted Data
- On the next screen, connected volumes and drive are displayed.
- Select the USB drive to erase all contents of your USB drive in one go
- If you are looking to erase only specific files/folders from your USB drive, follow the steps below
- Click ?Erase Files and Folders and on the next screen, click on Add items button
- From the list, select the USB drive and expand it to select the specific file(s)
- After you?ve made the selection, click on Erase Now button.
- Use Command Prompt
Through command prompt, you can either wipe the entire drive or choose to erase individual files and folders beyond recovery in two different ways.
You can use Cipher command or SDelete utility from Microsoft that runs through CMD. Cipher wipes only the free or empty storage space while SDelete lets you wipe an entire volume and individual files or folders with DoD 5220.22-M data erasure standard.
a. Use Cipher to wipe free storage space on USB Drive
The cipher is mainly used for encryption (NTFS) but it can also be used through the command line to erase previously deleted and recoverable files and folders:
- Connect USB drive and type following command in the CMD assuming E: is the USB drive letter
Cipher /w:E:\ and press Enter - Let it wipe your USB drive?s empty storage once with a series of 0’s (zero) then with a series of 255’s and finally once again with a series of random numbers
b. Use SDelete to Erase Data from USB Flash Drive
SDelete is a small utility that works via command line and uses the DoD data erasure algorithm to destroy data present on USB flash drives. Follow below-mentioned steps to use SDelete for deleting data from USB Flash drive and as a disk wiping tool:
- Download the SDelete (151 KB) program file from Microsoft?s official website
- Place it on the Desktop and then connect your USB flash drive
- Assuming USB drive letter is E:, type the following command in the terminal followed by the ?Enter? key
sdelete ?p 5 E:
This command will erase all files from the E: drive with 5 passes of DoD algorithm. The passes are defined with ?p parameter and you can choose n number of passes as per your choice - To wipe a specific or individual file, replace E:\* with E:\FILE_NAME
- To delete a directory, type sdelete ?s ?p 5 E:\FOLDER_NAME
- Encrypt Drive or Data
Encryption is a great tool to safeguard data from unauthorized access and for data destruction. Data erasure tools including command line and software-based erasure methods cannot destroy data from NAND flash-based storages i.e. SSDs. The only way to secure data and sanitize data in SSD is encryption. By deleting the encryption key, the data cannot be accessed which is equivalent to data destruction.
The same process can be used for deleting data from USB Flash drive.
For encryption, you can use BitLocker or similar encryption tools in Windows to protect and destroy your data.
Conclusion
To permanently delete data from USB Flash drive or other flash storages and hard drives, use a reliable data erasure software such as ?Stellar File Eraser?, as mentioned in this blog post. This erasure software is safe to use and helps you sanitize data from all kinds of storage media. Besides, the software also works as a privacy safeguarding tool and helps destroy confidential user data that?s stored in the form of internet activities, system traces, and application traces.
You may also use the command prompt or encryption method to destroy and safeguard your data. However, the aforesaid methods require some level of technical knowledge of computing and thus, not recommended for all users.
