Formatting isn't overwriting. A format overwrites the files headers,
just like a "deletion", but only overwrites a small random amount of the
data as a test. Depending on which format you use, windows97, bsd etc 57
formats might or might not be recoverable. I don't know the article he's
looking for, but it might be interesting if someone found it.
-Mike
Simson Garfinkel wrote:
I think that the article you are referring to was my article in which
I recovered data from 150+ hard drives purchased on eBay. But the data
was recovered with standard forensic tools.
There is no publicly available evidence that overwritten data has ever
been recovered from a hard drive that was manufactured after 1995.
-Simson
On Oct 24, 2006, at 5:12 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
I am looking for an article I read sometime between 2002 and 2005.
The content discussed how a research lab (maybe MIT or another large
tech university) was able to recover data from a hard drive after
over 50 formats (or it may have been data overwrites or even a
combination of both) (I seem to remember the key number as 57
"deletion" operations). I think the article mentioned the use of a
scanning electron microscope, magnetic force scanning, or something
similar or more high-tech. This might have been published to a tech
Web news site or a tech e-mail newsletter. I've searched for hours
and I can't seem to locate it again.
In my search I've come across numerous papers and articles about how
this recovery concept is not possible. So, it may have been a figment
of my imagination, a hoax, or misleading news reporting.
In any case, I really only need to hear from those of you who know
the location of this specific article rather than rebutals to the
possibility of the topic.
I appreciate any assistance provided.
- James Michael Stewart
