east-tec DisposeSecure vs File Shredder

east-tec DisposeSecure erases hard drives, selected partitions and connected external drives before computers are resold, donated or retired. The maker says its wiping methods meet and exceed the U.S. Department of Defense 5220.22-M disk-sanitizing standard, as well as other military, government and industrial standards. It can start from USB, CD, DVD, floppy or a local network, so erasure can run independently of the computer’s operating system. A Windows module handles detected non-system drives and partitions, including USB drives, memory cards and optical media. Over a local network, it can wipe multiple computers and send reports to a server; reports can also be saved locally for auditing or recordkeeping. The DisposeSecure Plan covers up to 10 PCs and includes one year of free updates and support. A fully functional 15-day trial is offered at no cost or obligation. Listed plan prices are $29.50 a month and $29.50 a year. For bootable disk use, the download page lists support for hard drives up to 1 TB.

File Shredder is a free Windows desktop application for permanently deleting unwanted files. It overwrites files with random binary data multiple times, and users can select from five shredding algorithms of increasing strength. The queue accepts individual files and folders, including their contents and subfolders. Its integrated Disk Wiper targets unused disk space. An optional setting adds secure deletion, queueing, and launch commands to Windows Explorer’s right-click menu. The program is released under the GNU/GPL General Public License and is free for personal and commercial use. The help page lists Windows NT, 2000, XP, 2003 Server, Vista, 7, 8, and 10. The maker says the application is not intended to shred entire disk volumes and cannot provide support for it. Shredding is permanent and cannot be undone, so users should check their selections before starting. The home page lists version 2.50.