Disk Wipe

Disk Wipe is a tiny and portable software application that you can use to shred data from a selected drive, in order to prevent specialized software (like Recuva) from getting ahold of it without your consent. It does not implement complicated configuration options, so it can be handled by all types of users.

Since installation is not a prerequisite, you can put the executable file in any part of the hard disk and just click it to run.

There is also the possibility to save Disk Wipe to a USB flash disk or similar storage unit, in order to run it on any PC with minimum effort and no previous installers.

An important factor to take into account is that the tool does not modify Windows registry settings, nor create extra files on the HDD, leaving no traces behind after its removal.

The interface is plain and simple to navigate, based on a single window that provides direct access to all options. You can specify the drive, number of passes, and wiping method between blank disk and random data. The first one just erases everything, while the second fills space with random data, as suggested by the name. Apart from the fact that you can cancel the task at any time, there are no other notable options available through the tool.

The tool is pretty low-demanding when it comes to CPU and RAM, so it does not really hog system resources. It may take a long time to finish a task, which is normal, depending on the drive size, wiping method and number of passes selected. Unfortunately, the tool has not been updated for a long time and it does not work properly on later Windows editions.