[israces]

Apologies if this is the wrong forum, but I don't really know what this would fall under.

About once or twice a month I need to completely erase (destroy) 10-15 CDs and DVDs (confidential client information). What I have been doing is either taking a letter opener and peeling off the label side of the disc or cutting the discs into about 6 pieces with some medical sheers and then throwing them away. I am assuming that this makes the disc completely unreadable, as in even if someone really really wanted to reconstruct the disc they would be unable to extract any data. (Am I right on this?).

I was wondering if there was a common solvent that I could simply dunk the discs in or wipe them with that would have the same effect and be easier to do with multiple discs. Anyone have any suggestions before I go to Home Depot and browse the cleaner and solvents aisle?

A disc shredder has been suggested as well, and I'm looking into that too, but they look to be a little more expensive than a $2.99 bottle of something and a 5 gallon bucket.

Any help would be appreciated.

[SSharon]

I agree with the shredding idea. Most office paper shredders that I have seen allow you to cut credit cards and CD's in them as well.

[CaptainHaddock]

Originally posted by israces:
About once or twice a month I need to completely erase (destroy) 10-15 CDs and DVDs (confidential client information).

Just a few seconds in a microwave will actually vaporize the metal disc inside the CD or DVD, completely destroying it. 3 seconds will do it. The disc will apparently still be cool when you remove it.

I'm not saying I recommend that, but even the NSA couldn't recover anything from such a disc!

http://www.prairienet.org/~tatwell/cd_burning.html
http://hamjudo.com/notes/cdrom.html

[macaddict0001]

peeling the label side with a letter opener won't really do anything.

[senseigmg]

how would it not? The label side has the metal that the data is written on i believe. I've shattered discs, scratched the top with a pen/knife. For solvents, maybe xylene, concentrated H2SO4 (sulfuric acid). How much is your client confidentiality worth? It's not worth the 30-40 bux for a cd shredder? Also, if you're cutting cd's you could also throw them away on different days, different places (to be ultra paranoid).

As for the microwave thing, I saw it on TechTV a few months ago, it is a sweet light show, but they said the microwave becomes unusable for food due to the fumes.

[Cadaver]

Originally posted by SSharon:
I agree with the shredding idea. Most office paper shredders that I have seen allow you to cut credit cards and CD's in them as well.

[israces]

Originally posted by senseigmg:
How much is your client confidentiality worth? It's not worth the 30-40 bux for a cd shredder?

I was told that they were more like $150.00 and that they would eventually wear out. Having a bucket somewhere with a solvent solution in it that we could just drop discs in would be more cost effective in the long run, at least that's what I was hoping.

[analogika]

Originally posted by senseigmg:
As for the microwave thing, I saw it on TechTV a few months ago, it is a sweet light show, but they said the microwave becomes unusable for food due to the fumes.

I do it fairly frequently, and the trick is to only leave it in there for a few seconds.

The results are quite pretty. DVDs look different from CDs.

You can get a new microwave for $30, and used ones for nearly free.

Surely that beats $130 for a disk shredder?

[Mojo]

Whenever I handle sensitive data I encrypt the files. I would be especially careful with data that moves about, such as on a portable Mac or CDs. Destroying the CDs is a good idea and encyrption puts another solid layer of protection between thieves and your data.

And if you move sensitive data over a wireless LAN then WEP (or, better yet, WPA) encyrption should be enabled on your wireless router.

A very easy to use program is File Utilities, a $25 program that combines encryption, decryption, and data shredding. (Shredding digital data is also an excellent idea for anyone handling sensitive files.)

I have used Encryptor for at least a couple years. It is is easy to use, fast and secure. When I purchased Encryptor it wasn't bundled with the other applications, so I use ShredIt! and NetShredX for data, download cache, browser history, e-mail trash and other shredding. (NetShredX can be configured to automatically shred cache, browser history and e-mail trash when an application is quit.)

BTW, I also use a microwave to obliterate CDs. A few seconds is all it takes; try popping a cooked CD in an optical drive and see what happens...it will spit it right out!

[Goldfinger]

H2SO4

[tooki]

Originally posted by senseigmg:
As for the microwave thing, I saw it on TechTV a few months ago, it is a sweet light show, but they said the microwave becomes unusable for food due to the fumes.

If that's true (which I seriously doubt), I guess I shouldn't have made all those pizzas after microwaving those CD-Rs!

But realistically, microwaving CDs isn't good for the microwave oven.

Just shop around online for a CD shredder and use that.

tooki

P.S. The data is not stored in the metallic layer, it's stored in the dye layer, which is normally adhered to the plastic, not the metal.

[israces]

Originally posted by tooki:


P.S. The data is not stored in the metallic layer, it's stored in the dye layer, which is normally adhered to the plastic, not the metal.

That's what I was starting to wonder about. So the dye layer is in the plastic and the metallic layer is just to provide some sort of contrast for the laser to bounce off of as it reads the burned layer? So I need to physically destroy the plastic for the disc to be completely unreadable or (technically) someone could paint another metallic layer on and read the disc.

So as far as shredders go, what is the real-world difference between a $150 model from Staples and the $2,500 one that is DoD certified?

[zerostar]

This is the one we use at work:

http://www.supermediastore.com/alera...shredder.html#

Have pushed a few hundred CDs thru it and never a problem...

For $40 it can't be beat.

[Skip Breakfast]

I just try to make them into tacos until they snap.