Full Wipe

A simple removal process of files does not mean they are permanently gone. A small portion of data remains hidden in clusters and it can be retrieved with specialized applications. If you want to make sure no one is able to recover deleted files you can do so with utilities like Full Wipe that act on a series of strong algorithms to rewrite over specific bits of data to make them unreadable.

Overall the application is pretty lightweight, taking little of your time to deploy and get you acquainted with all it has to offer. Stored in a compact main window, functions only count as a few, with a drop-down menu that displays all connected external memory units and a progress slider to let you know when work is done.

Don't be fooled by the name, because you can only target external devices that are connected through a USB cable, not your physical hard disk drive. As soon as a drive is connected, the application is capable of detecting it and displays the corresponding letter in a drop-down menu. There's also a “Scan” button for unforeseen events.

After selection is done there isn't much left to do. One of four wipe round can be selected, and the higher the value, the less chances of anyone to retrieve data. Options let you pick one, two or seven rounds, as well as let the application wipe until you hit the “Stop” button.

Data is completely removed, regardless of the file system type your drive is. However, it's a little difficult to know when the process is done, although steps taken are displayed and there's also a progress slider. Confusion is created by the status bar that constantly indicates that the app is ready, as well as the fact that no confirmation is provided and you can use the drive or even format it while the process is underway.

On an ending note, Full Wipe is somewhere on the middle of the road to being a pro of its kind. It does a pretty good job at removing files once and for all, and although accommodation and process triggering is incredibly easy, you don't get a sense of accomplishment because of the little details, like the lack of an alert system for when you're done.