Page 210 - Cyber Defense eMagazine September 2025

• Use scheduling and automation: Don’t wait for the next data breach scare to remember to wipe.
Set up your eraser tool on a regular schedule. Stellar File Eraser and similar tools support
automated jobs, which reduces the chance of human forgetfulness.
• Cover all copies (and clouds): Remember, data often has backups or cloud copies lurking.
Deleting a file on one computer doesn’t automatically erase it from Google Drive, Dropbox, or
backup servers. So make sure your wipe policy includes removing files from cloud services and
backups if needed
• Document and audit: Incorporate wiping into your official security policies. Keep logs of wipe
actions and use the eraser’s reports as evidence. This not only helps with audits, but also ensures
someone is actually responsible for data sanitization.
• Train and enforce: Finally, educate your team. People tend to underestimate how easy data
recovery is. Teach users why they should use secure delete tools (not just the Recycle Bin) and
enforce rules for decommissioning PCs, retiring drives, or off-boarding employees. Combine
wiping with good access controls and monitoring (even behavior analytics) for a layered defense.

Do this regularly, and you can significantly reduce the risk of a careless mistake or a malicious act causing
irreversible damage to your privacy.

Conclusion

In a nutshell, deletion alone is a dangerous illusion. Data only truly vanishes when it’s been overwritten
or destroyed beyond recovery. For IT pros and security teams, that means treating the delete key as the
first step, not the last. Secure file wiping is a powerful layer of defense against insider threats: it makes
sure that even if someone can access an old drive or account, there’s nothing of value to take. Tools like
Stellar File Eraser (yes, even in its free form) put military-grade wiping technology into your hands. Pairing
such tools with good policies, such as backups, encryption, documentation, and user training, ensures
that when it’s time for data to go, it really goes. After all, once data “disappears” into an insider’s hands,
no amount of deleting can undo the damage. Better to slash it into unreadable bits first and truly say
goodbye for good.

Cyber Defense eMagazine – September 2025 Edition 210
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