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How to erase a USB Flash Drive
on Mac OS X using ShredIt
Before disposing of a USB flash drive, we recommend that you erase all the data you don't want the next user to be able to recover. To do so, follow this procedure.
In addition, since you carry your USB Flash Drive with you, there's always a risk that it may be lost or stolen. If you've had confidential data on it that you've deleted but not erased, that data can still be recovered. To safeguard against this, erase the free space on your Flash Drive after deleting confidential data. For more information, see Step 5.
Read all of these instructions before continuing.
A USB Flash Drive is the generic term for a small, self-powered data storage device that connects to a computer directly through a USB port. It's about the size of a pack of chewing gum, and is both Mac and Windows compatible. Flash drives are often called a brand name such as key drive, thumb drive, jump drive, and pen drive.
Before you erase the flash drive, make a backup copy of any data you want to keep, since the files cannot be recovered from the drive after the drive has been erased.
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Requirements
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- ShredIt for Mac OS X
- USB Flash Drive
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If you haven't already done so, install ShredIt. For further information, go to “How to Install ShredIt” .
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Plug the USB Flash Drive in to the USB port located on your Mac. This will mount the USB Flash Drive.
Once mounted, it will appear on the drive menu of the finder.
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Move all the files you want to keep from the USB Flash Drive on to the hard drive.
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Move all the files left on the USB Flash Drive from the USB Flash Drive to the trash. Empty the trash.
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Using ShredIt X, shred the disk free space on the USB Flash Drive.
There are three ways to erase the free space on a disk using ShredIt X.
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Notes
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- For more detailed information about ShredIt X for Mac OS X, refer to the
- There's an important difference between the technical terms "delete" and "secure delete".
- The technical computer term "delete" refers to the type of computer function where the data is marked as deleted, but not really gone. Functions such as dragging a file to the trash/recycle bin and then emptying it marks the data as deleted so the space can be used again, but the data itself remains on the hard drive and recoverable until it is overwritten by something else. On a hard drive with lots of free space, this could take months or even years.
- On the other hand, the technical term "secure delete" refers to the type of computer function where the data is overwritten by other characters so the data can't be recovered. "Secure Delete" is also referred to as "clean", "wipe", "erase" and "shred". Computer software that performs this type of function is often called a "file shredder" a "data shredder" or "secure delete utility".
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