read_connect(); //$GLOBALS[ezoic_db]->read->query("use 17things"); ?>

what is the safest way to clean my PC to sell?

I have a Dell PC and I am selling it. However I don’t want the new owner to have all my information and programs. What is the best way to wipe it clean?

Related Items

6 Responses to “what is the safest way to clean my PC to sell?”

  1. Dan S said :

    Darik’s Boot and Nuke. Go download the image, burn it to a cd and boot from the cd.
    http://www.dban.org/

  2. josh said :

    Insert your windows cd, and re-install it and format it. If you dont want to re-install xp, then put the drive in another computer, and format for NTFS.

  3. Kevin S said :

    Restore it, or you could remove every program with “programs and features” and remove all person items, remove all book marks, wipe internet history, it’d be jsut easier to restore

  4. Like It Too Much said :

    Ranked #1: Privacy Control
    Privacy Control Review: Free to Try. $29.95 to Buy
    Privacy Control is the absolute best software I have tested in completely erasing information from my computer. And from what I have been reading, I am not alone in this opinion.
    Privacy Control has an easy installation, and you can do a custom setup depending on the skill level you are comfortable with.
    You can actually see the deleted files that are being found during the scan, which is a very handy feature as well. It’s amazing what it can dig up.
    There are 3 levels of scanning you can choose from: Quick, Safe, and Thorough. The “Thorough” scan actually surpasses military requirements for the computers they use and in the government.
    A Protection guard system will save the cookies that are useful to you, if you so choose to keep them during the scan.
    Privacy Control will scan more applications than any other deletion software program tested. These applications include deleting personal files in: email clients, instant messaging programs, media players, p2p, Voip, Ms file history and much more.
    If you don’t want someone to find some personal information on your computer I highly recommend you download Privacy Control.
    Customer support is one of the best.
    Privacy Control comes with a rock-solid 100% money back guarantee.

    Ranked #2: Evidence Eraser
    Evidence Eraser Review: Free to Download. $29.95 to Buy
    Evidence Eraser could easily be the number one product for erasing private data before Privacy Control came along, and is still a very good program. Many computer repair companies use Evidence Eraser to clear data from the hard drives to ensure privacy is protected and will charge $97 for it.
    Well you can get it here for much less so don’t pay that much.
    Evidence Eraser actually meets the requirements of the Department of Defense, and you KNOW they have strict standards for privacy protection.
    This software is very simple to use as well and has a nice interface on the website. Evidence Eraser has a great reputation and was able to delete all the personal files that I wanted to remain private. You can choose which ones to keep and which ones to eradicate forever.
    Comes with a 100% money back guarantee that is rock solid.

    Ranked #3: WinClear
    WinClear Review: Free to Download. $37.00 to Buy
    WinClear is an up-and-coming computer eraser program that has a lot of people talking. It actually surprised me by how good it was and I had to put it in the top 4 list.
    It does cost a few dollars more than the top 2 on the list but WinClear has a lot of extra frills to keep it’s customers happy and safe.
    Besides shredding your files beyond recovery (guaranteed) WinClear will free up some disk space on your hard drive and can also erase your index.dat file, which cannot be deleted manually.
    Your browsing history will truly be erased forever and WinClear has fast and effective customer support if you have any questions. I’m sure you will love checking out their website here.
    I was also impressed by the speed of the scan WinClear ran in finding those private files to erase permanently.
    There are numerous options for shredding your private data as well. You can do 1 pass for fast and simple shredding but have the risk of someone being able to recover that data, or pick DOD 5220 which will run 3 passes through the private data and shred it 3 times, making it much more difficult to recover. Or you can run the NSA shred which does 7 passes through the information to make it extremely tough for anyone, anywhere to recover anything. Finally you can select the Gutmann option which will pass over the private data 35 times! The Gutmann method was created by Pete Gutmann and Colin Plumb in 1996 and is one of the most sophisticated data eraser methods available today.
    Although WinClear is ranked number 3, it can be a great option for you and can effectively do the job of eliminating your private information.
    Overall an excellent pick if you want to pay an extra ten bucks to erase your private data on your harddrive.
    Check out the video below showing you how Win Clear Works. It’s really great software:

    Ranked # 4: Evidence Smart
    Evidence Smart Review: Free to Download. $34.95 to Buy
    Evidence Smart is also a new great software on the scene in deleting browsing history from your hard drive.
    A free trial version of Evidence Smart is available for those who just want to try it out for a while to see if they like it or not.
    Evidence Smart also comes with unlimited updates so you can stay updated on the newest trends and features of the software.
    There is a very thorough list on their website that has all of the many features this program can offer as well.
    The one-click operation that comes with Evidence Smart makes it great for novice computer users who just want something simple but effective to erase their data.
    24 hour customer service is included as well so you can always be taken care of if you get into troubl

  5. cousin said :

    you could rerun the disk,but i found out even changing the hard drive may not work,somehow info may be left in the circuit boards ,but to get to it lot of work , so first open the hard drive on the computer page ,,hand delete all programs and files that you could,,don,t open everyone or i,ll take days,,then run the disk..install new partition ,,wipe it clean ,start new,,that.s it,,the other answers ,also great..thank you

  6. Tena Fegaro said :

    Wow, cool post I’d like to write like this too – taking time and real hard work to make a great article… but I put things off too much and never seem to get started Thanks though




Message:

[newtagclound int=0]

Subscribe

Recent Comments

Recent Posts

Archives