ladyjeweler20
October 6, 2002, 06:39 pm
Tip is from LangaList Newsletter.
Make Discarded CDs Snoop-Proof
7) Make Discarded CDs Snoop-Proof
Hi Fred: With the drop in price for both CD burners and media, I now routinely create disk images for backup purposes. What do I do with my old image CD's to keep the data from prying eyes? I have seen reference to a CD shredder from Alera Technologies that costs about $75. Are there any other, that is cheaper, ways to dispose of old CD's and keep my privacy? Thanks for you help. Regards, Grant
The data on a CD is stored in a layer of dye under the label: The CD's laser shines up through the clear plastic body of the CD to the dye layer for reading or writing.
So, to make a CD unreadable, just mechanically damage the dye layer: It's a simple thing with a letter-opener, screwdriver or knife--- just score (abrade) the label side. A couple of deep gouges (down to the plastic) and the CD will be unreadable in normal CD drives. The more scratches and gouges, the harder it will be to recover *any* data from the CD. And if you want even more security, snap the CD in two after it's been scratched. (Watch out for shrapnel--- breaking a CD can launch small shards of sharp plastic at high speeds...)
CD shredders might be useful if you routinely have to destroy large numbers of old CDs, or if you need to ensure that even tiny scraps and fragments of data will be unrecoverable. But for routine snoop-proofing, simple low-tech scratching and breaking is fine.
Make Discarded CDs Snoop-Proof
7) Make Discarded CDs Snoop-Proof
Hi Fred: With the drop in price for both CD burners and media, I now routinely create disk images for backup purposes. What do I do with my old image CD's to keep the data from prying eyes? I have seen reference to a CD shredder from Alera Technologies that costs about $75. Are there any other, that is cheaper, ways to dispose of old CD's and keep my privacy? Thanks for you help. Regards, Grant
The data on a CD is stored in a layer of dye under the label: The CD's laser shines up through the clear plastic body of the CD to the dye layer for reading or writing.
So, to make a CD unreadable, just mechanically damage the dye layer: It's a simple thing with a letter-opener, screwdriver or knife--- just score (abrade) the label side. A couple of deep gouges (down to the plastic) and the CD will be unreadable in normal CD drives. The more scratches and gouges, the harder it will be to recover *any* data from the CD. And if you want even more security, snap the CD in two after it's been scratched. (Watch out for shrapnel--- breaking a CD can launch small shards of sharp plastic at high speeds...)
CD shredders might be useful if you routinely have to destroy large numbers of old CDs, or if you need to ensure that even tiny scraps and fragments of data will be unrecoverable. But for routine snoop-proofing, simple low-tech scratching and breaking is fine.