Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

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porcupine
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by porcupine »

I have been using TaxAct for the last few years (a satisfied customer). My laptop has now become a bit ancient and I need to get it cleaned and overhauled (I am not too good with that sort of a thing, especially with a laptop). WIth that in mind, I need to clean out my TaxAct data that is lying in its hard drive before I give the laptop to someone for a couple of days.

With the caveat that it is not easy to scrub the data (given that there is probably other financial stuff also somewhere - in some scrambled format or the other - on the laptop), what is the quickest way for me to do the minimum I could do so that if someone wants to get at that stuff, it won't be that easy (at least)?

At the very least, I can delete all those files and uninstall the software. But is there one or two more steps I can take short of reformatting the hard drive? I definitely don't want to have to reinstall everything back on it.

Would appreciate any input, especially from those who do use TaxAct, as they will likely be more familiar with the software.

- Porcupine

PS: Mods, if you wish, please move this thread to the Consumer Issues section (I put it here as it might catch the attention of TaxAct users) :-)
sscritic
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by sscritic »

Google secure delete. The answer will depend on the operating system you are using.
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AAA
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by AAA »

sscritic wrote:Google secure delete. The answer will depend on the operating system you are using.
I wish people in this forum would not reply to posts with just a suggestion to Google it. First, the person asking the question may not be adept at understanding the technicalities of what he may find with Google, or be overwhelmed by the amount of information found. Second, the questions posed in this forum are an opportunity for others who may be in a similar situation to learn something from the discussion.

And really, almost any post can be responded to with a suggestion to Google it.
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Lacrocious
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by Lacrocious »

I haven't used the feature, but CC Cleaner (https://www.piriform.com/ccleaner) has a feature to wipe a whole drive, or just the free space. It looks to do a secure, multi-pass overwrite of free space. So you could try that - erase the files then use the CC Cleaner free-space wipe tool to securely erase the free space. Of course, make proper backups of your data before you do something like this. I have used CC Cleaner for the clean up functions, just not the secure erase function.

- L
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neurosphere
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by neurosphere »

AAA wrote:
sscritic wrote:Google secure delete. The answer will depend on the operating system you are using.
I wish people in this forum would not reply to posts with just a suggestion to Google it.
Sometimes the answer is very amenable to a google search. Sometimes the suggestion of a useful phrase to google is very helpful in itself, i.e. "secure delete" vs " is there a way to get my TaxAct files off my laptop?" And that the right search term quickly answers the OP's question.

There are thousands of posters here, and we all have our own style of responding. Other than moderators deleting posts/threads which violate rules or are otherwise inappropriate, we all just learn to skip over posts we don't personally find helpful.

That said, here is my contribution:

I'm no computer expert, but I think the only way to really get rid of data is to delete the files and then use a utility of some sort to "wipe" those files. But if you delete the taxact files AND uninstall TaxAct, do you really think that the person you are giving your laptop too will do deep forensics to find what sorts of files were deleted, and then recover them? Especially if you are only lending your laptop for a couple of days? Of course, you know your friend better than I! :wink:
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Duckie
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by Duckie »

porcupine, it depends on your operating system. I have a Mac and in Disk Utility I have an "Erase Free Space" option. It writes zeros over all unused space (including all deleted files) once, three times, or seven times. It takes a while so I do it at night but it provides security.
sscritic
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by sscritic »

AAA wrote:
sscritic wrote:Google secure delete. The answer will depend on the operating system you are using.
I wish people in this forum would not reply to posts with just a suggestion to Google it.
Did you google it? I did before I posted so I knew that there were going to be good answers. I guess I could have copied and pasted the google results page. Note that some of the links aren't; they are just strings of letters that don't respond to clicks, unlike on the real google results page. Take your pick.
Learn How to Securely Delete Files in Windows - How-To Geek
http://www.howtogeek.com/.../learn-how- ... -windows/‎
Sep 1, 2011 - There are many tools available out there that allow you to securely delete files so they cannot be recovered. This article provides a summary of ...
SDelete - TechNet - Microsoft
technet.microsoft.com › ... › File and Disk Utilities‎
Microsoft TechNet
Jan 11, 2013 - Securely overwrite your sensitive files and cleanse your free space of previously deleted files using this DoD-compliant secure delete program.
How to securely wipe sensitive files--or your entire hard drive ...
http://www.pcworld.com/.../how-to-secur ... es-or-...‎
PC World
Jun 13, 2013 - If you want to truly and securely delete a file, or the contents of an entire drive, you need software that will overwrite the space where the file(s) ...
Eraser | Internet Security and Privacy
eraser.heidi.ie/‎
Your first thought may be that when you 'delete' the file, the data is gone. ... There are several problems in secure file removal, mostly caused by the use of write ...
Recuva - Securely delete files you want to erase forever - Piriform
http://www.piriform.com › Products › Recuva › Features‎
Piriform
Securely delete files you want to erase forever. If you can recover your files with Recuva, then a hacker can too. Anyone with access to your drives can run ...
Piriform - Secure file deletion
http://www.piriform.com › Docs › Recuva › Technical Information‎
Piriform
Recuva can recover files you've deleted normally and delete them again using industry-standard secure deletion methods. This is useful if you've deleted ...
Secure Deletion | EFF Surveillance Self-Defense Project
https://ssd.eff.org/tech/deletion‎
Electronic Frontier Found...
Secure deletion involves the use of special software to ensure that when you delete a file, there really is no way to get it back again. When you "delete" a file ...
Secure delete: permanently erase files and folders - PeaZip
peazip.sourceforge.net/secure-delete.html‎
PeaZip
How to securely delete files with PeaZip free archive manager software for Windows and Linux. Freeware utility for secure data deletion, erase files.
Best Free Hard Drive Eraser - Gizmo's Tech Support Alert
http://www.techsupportalert.com/best-fr ... raser.htm‎
Eraser allows you to easily add tasks to securely erase selected files and folders, unused disk space (aka free space), cluster tips (aka slack space), and the ...
TweakNow SecureDelete
http://www.tweaknow.com/SecureDelete.php‎
Tweak Now will help you securely delete - erase files and folders, empty recycle bin and clear paging file at shutdown. Download free Windows 7, XP, secure ...
xenial
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by xenial »

neurosphere wrote:But if you delete the taxact files AND uninstall TaxAct, do you really think that the person you are giving your laptop too will do deep forensics to find what sorts of files were deleted, and then recover them?
"Deep forensics" are not required, and someone proficient at computer repair is exactly the type of person who could easily retrieve the deleted data. For a Windows laptop with a mechanical hard drive, I suggest using Eraser to securely delete all sensitive files and wipe the free space (It's free).
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neurosphere
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by neurosphere »

Ken Schwartz wrote:"Deep forensics" are not required, and someone proficient at computer repair is exactly the type of person who could easily retrieve the deleted data.
Whoops, thanks, I missed that part where the laptop was being given to a techie. Sorry.
If you have to ask "Is a Target Date fund right for me?", the answer is "Yes" (even in taxable accounts).
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AAA
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by AAA »

sscritic wrote:
AAA wrote:
sscritic wrote:Google secure delete. The answer will depend on the operating system you are using.
I wish people in this forum would not reply to posts with just a suggestion to Google it.
Did you google it? I did before I posted so I knew that there were going to be good answers. I guess I could have copied and pasted the google results page. Note that some of the links aren't; they are just strings of letters that don't respond to clicks, unlike on the real google results page. Take your pick.
Exactly my point. If someone is not knowledgeable about how to secure a hard drive and they are directed to do a search that provides dozens of alternatives, if not more, I don't think that is the most helpful response. In general, people who post are looking for specific advice/experience, not an exhaustive listing of all the possibilities.
sscritic
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by sscritic »

AAA wrote: Exactly my point. If someone is not knowledgeable about how to secure a hard drive and they are directed to do a search that provides dozens of alternatives, if not more, I don't think that is the most helpful response. In general, people who post are looking for specific advice/experience, not an exhaustive listing of all the possibilities.
Well, I don't do windows, I only do google. Which one do you recommend?

P.S. When I look at google results, I tend to start at the top (that's how I read a page of text). If the first or second line I read gives me a good answer, I don't read the rest of the list. You might take a different approach.
mnvalue
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by mnvalue »

I'm in IT, so let me suggest an alternative view of the issue: You're focusing on the wrong problem. If you're taking your computer to someone you do not trust, you've already lost. Let's say you securely delete your confidential files before you bring the computer in for service. When you bring it back, are you going to use it for financial stuff again? If so, the repair shop could've just trojan'ed the computer so they capture all that new data anyway.

If you still want to do this, delete the files, then use some program like CCleaner to wipe the free space. Uninstalling the program should not be necessary. If you choose to do that anyway, do it before wiping the free space.
Topic Author
porcupine
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Re: Data security (removing old TaxAct files)

Post by porcupine »

Thanks to everyone for your responses - they were very helpful, though in the end, I just went ahead and performed a wipe using ccleaner.
mnvalue wrote:I'm in IT, so let me suggest an alternative view of the issue: You're focusing on the wrong problem. If you're taking your computer to someone you do not trust, you've already lost. Let's say you securely delete your confidential files before you bring the computer in for service. When you bring it back, are you going to use it for financial stuff again? If so, the repair shop could've just trojan'ed the computer so they capture all that new data anyway.

If you still want to do this, delete the files, then use some program like CCleaner to wipe the free space. Uninstalling the program should not be necessary. If you choose to do that anyway, do it before wiping the free space.
I am in IT as well but in software not hardware. Besides, though I can be dangerous with the innards of a PC, I don't really want to mess with a laptop.

That said, what you say is true. But I don't think I will be using the laptop too much for financial stuff going forward. It will likely function similar to a Roku box or something like that. But I do need to stop it from overheating.

To respond to OR (original responder) sscritic: I was too lazy to use google. But even had I done so, it is still using results recommended by folks I don't know as opposed to bogleheads who I can trust a bit more (at least) :-) Also, I didn't realize the ccleaner can do a wipe, and that is what I've used.

- Porcupine
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