Re: Cleaning up laptop for resale

HI everyone

Thanks to all of you for replying to my question. I have a confession to
make! I DO have the restore disc. I didn't realise this is what I needed to
reinstall Windows. Sorry... I have now reinstalled windows (having performed
a full format of the HD).

But I am still worried that if I sell the laptop some clever person might
still be able to retrieve my data. Am I worrying unnecessarily? Would it help
to use a file shredder or is is too late given that I've reformatted my drive?

I have posted a question about file shredders separately to this thread
(which was a bit dumb) so apologies to anyone who replies there too.
--


Many thanks
JD


"Bruce Chambers" wrote:

> Jackie D wrote:
> > Hi
> >
> > I'm selling my laptop and want to clear all my files off first (including
> > cookies, history etc). Is there a procedure I should follow to ensure nothing
> > of me remains?
> >
>
>
> To protect your personal information and data from any future users
> of average skills, you should, at the very least, format the hard drive
> and reinstall only the OS and those applications whose licenses are to
> be included in the transfer. If you wish to do a more thorough job of
> protecting your personal data, WipeDrive 2.2.1
> (http://www.accessdata.com/Product07_Overview.htm?ProductNum=07) meets
> U.S. DoD standards for securely cleaning surplus unclassified hard
> drives, and could be used before formatting and reinstalling the OS and
> applications.
>
>
> > I don't have a windows xp disk (it came already installed) so maybe
> > reformatting the drive isn't a good idea? Or perhaps it is? I could do with
> > some guidance.
> >
>
>
> Even if the laptop's manufacturer didn't provide a WinXP installation
> CD, they would have had to have provided you some means of returning the
> laptop to it's original, ex-factory state. Consult the manual that came
> with the laptop, or the manufacturer's web site for precise instructions.
>
>
> --
>
> Bruce Chambers
>
> Help us help you:
> http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
> http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
>
> You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having
> both at once. - RAH
>
.

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