To properly wipe a 2.0 USB drive and remove all data, you can't just click "format" as it only erases the file system and not the actual data. You can use a tool like DBAN (Darik's Boot and Nuke) or a similar software to completely erase the drive, or simply use the built-in disk wipe feature on your computer's operating system. It's also a good idea to physically destroy the drive if you're really concerned about data security. However, if you're just looking to sell the drive, a simple format should be sufficient. Just make sure to back up any data you want to keep before wiping the drive.
The USB flash drive's portability and performance make it a popular data storage device, but sometimes it's necessary to wipe clean the drive, especially when selling, donating, or disposing of an old one. Formatting and deleting the drive don't completely erase data, as these operations only remove the file system and make the data invisible, making it retrievable with a data recovery program. To ensure complete data erasure, a professional wiping tool is required.
To completely wipe a flash drive in Windows 10, 8, 7, use Qiling Disk Master Professional's "Wipe Hard Drive" feature, which offers 4 wiping methods, including filling sectors with zeros, random data, oD 5220.22-M, and Gutmann, for various types of hard drives.DoD 5220.22-M, and Gutmann, for various types of hard drives.
You can download the free demo version to try it out first. To wipe a flash drive clean, follow these steps: [insert steps here].
Before you do: 1. If you have any important data on the device, back it up to a secure location, such as an external hard drive or cloud storage, before proceeding with the factory reset.
Step 1. Install and run Qiling Disk Master. Select "Wipe Data".
Step 2. To erase a hard drive, click on the hard drive you want to erase, select a wiping method, and choose "Erase times one (Fill sectors with random data)" from the options.
Step 3. Click "Proceed" to start wiping the hard drive.
This software can securely erase flash drives and SSDs without causing damage, including SSD Secure Erase, which only works on Windows 7, requiring the SSD to be connected to a Windows 7 computer and detected.
To wipe a flash drive clean in Windows 10, 8, 7, you can use the disk wipe function in Qiling Disk Master Professional. This software also offers other great features, such as the "Allocate Free Space" function, which transfers unused disk space from one partition to another, and the "Clone Disk" feature, which clones USB drives, SD cards, and more. For Windows Server users, iling Disk Master Server is available to completely wipe a flash drive in Server 2019/2016/2012/2008/2003.Qiling Disk Master Server is available to completely wipe a flash drive in Server 2019/2016/2012/2008/2003.