OT: You're being watched etc.

[Jason]

When you delete a file in Windows all it does is delete the pointer to the file so although the operating system doesnt think it is there anymore (hence you cannot see it) it is on your hard drive and is still accessible with specialist software (this is how the authorities are able to find deleted stuff off hard drives and how deleted data can be recovered using undelete programs for example or commercially)

The only two ways to remove data for good are:

1) Physically destroy the drive - i.e break it into little pieces (just hitting it with a hammer may not be enough!)

2) Overwrite the while drive with other data - industry standard (and MOD I believe too) is to overwrite the whole disk four times. This is generally accepted as making data unrecoverable.

Hope this helps!

Jason

[mark]

Remember hardcore consensual porn is not illegal (R18 videos) so unless like buttsie says, you are downloading kiddie stuff you have nothing to fear.
mark

[Richy]

...regular Defrags help, too.

[Richy]

...you can access it from the start menu. When setting up the search for pictures, leave the boxes for the date limits empty, then Windows will search for ALL pictures. It's quite surprising what it finds !!

[bulldog]

Very interesting reading this, so i thought i might help out a little. If any of you guys use kazaa/kazaa lite put in search field'ENCASE'.
This will then search for a program titled above.
This program is used by the met. police dept when they search your pc for anything they want...porn,hacking programs, anything.
Run it. You will be very very suprised with what you will find.
Movies that you have played, old search fields that you thought you had deleted, cookies that you thought you had deleted from your computer from awhile back. Very intersting stuff.
As was said in the above threads.....
Nothing can be deleted from your pc, Unless you take a sledge hammer to it.

[Richy]

Facinating. What is kazaa, please?

[Ed]

agreed nothing can be deleted, but i was under the impression that certain file shredding programmes, which are easily found just by doing a search, and are free or shareware, make it virtually impossible to recover data. is this not the case?

[mike hunt]

the way i see it is as long as your not downloading anything bad what are you worrying about....

[woodgnome]

this s/w suggests that it is:

[Pete]

The issue which seems to be missed by the noble forumites is.. its not whether its illegal... those of you with families, those of you who covertly porn-feed... you would be scared shitless if you knew the number of marriages/relationships that have gone pear-shaped when the partner (or kids) have accidentally discovered daddie's porn hobbies.

EE is NOT the cheapest by far, but IMO probably the best, but it defeats ENCASE, so its effective. It's hated because a) It scaremongers ..its commercial(no worse than multinational deodearnt companies..)
b) It's British.

I have personal friends who would have dearly paid the asking price for EE or one of the pukka alternatives.. when their marriages ( and in two cases jobs)went tits up, they lost rather more than the ability to post know all no-brainer posts here!! And yes, I AM an EE affiliate. And it converts quite well. As you chaps hardly ever pay for internet porn, is it that offensive to suggest that you might like to protect your right to store porn on yr hard drive and remove every tarce of your surfing? Ask Gary Glitter!!!