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Have you ever thought about getting rid of or selling your old Mac? Is it scary that someone might find your private stuff? Do not worry! This guide will help you with a process known as "Mac data erasure." If you do this, your Mac will start over, and any hidden files, photos, or papers will be erased permanently.

Putting your trash in the recycling bin is important without first dumping it. It's like that when you delete things on your Mac. They could still be there, ready to be found. When you erase data, it's like tearing that trash - no one can put it back together again.

This guide will show you why you might want to delete data from your Mac and how to do it, and it will give you some useful tools to do it. Your privacy will be safe because we'll keep things simple and clear.

erase data on Mac

Why Need to Erase Data on Mac Permanently?

Erasing data means removing it from a recording device for good so it can't be recovered in any way. This step is important for several reasons:

  • Data Privacy: To keep your privacy and stop identity theft, keeping sensitive information like personal data, bank records, and intellectual property safe is important.
  • Compliance: Strict rules about data protection apply to many fields, such as the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the US Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Following these rules and avoiding expensive fines is easier if you delete data correctly.
  • Preventing Data Breaches: Devices thrown away improperly can pose a big risk of data breaches. People and businesses can lower this risk by safely erasing data from devices before throwing them away or using them for something else.

Before you sell, donate or dispose of an old Mac/digital device, you’d better permanently wipe all data permanently from the Mac internal drive/digital device.

Common Mac Data Erasure Methods

There are different ways to delete files from a Mac, and each one is more or less safe and effective. These are the most popular ways:

Overwriting:

With this method, new data is written over old data several times, making it impossible to recover the old data. There are many overwriting algorithms, some of which follow well-known rules, like the Gutmann method or the DoD 5220.22-M standard.

Secure Erase:

Solid-state drives (SSDs) and other storage devices have a feature called "secure erase" that deletes all the data on the device quickly and permanently. This way works well, but it might not work on all devices.

Encryption:

Putting data through encryption before deletion makes it even safer because it can't be read without the encryption key. It is impossible to regain the data once the encryption key has been lost or erased.

Physical Destruction:

Physically destroying the storage media may be the safest way to eliminate highly sensitive data or gadgets that can't be erased safely with software. Usually, this means burning storage devices or shredding hard drives to ensure that data can't be retrieved.

The best way to erase data on Mac depends on how sensitive the data you want to delete. A single-overwrite method is enough for everyday use. Consider using a multi-overwrite or DoD standard if the information is very private.

Built-in Mac Erasing Tools vs. Third-Party Data Erasure Software

Built-in Mac Tools:

Disk Utility: Disk Utility is a built-in tool in macOS that lets you delete whole drives or sectors. It doesn't have secure erasure options, but you can use it with other apps for a more complete solution.

Note: All or some of the lost files which are erased by Disk Utility can be recovered by data recovery software.

Third-Party Software:

  • Advantages: Dedicated data erasure software has safer ways to delete data, more thorough reports on the deletion process, and easier-to-use interfaces.
  • Considerations: Look into Mac data erasure software with a good name, reviews from other users, and the tools you need. Here are some popular choices to think about (but make sure you check them out yourself to see what's new):

1. DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac:

DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac is one of the best Mac data erasure programs. It is a 100% safe and easy-to-use erasure program. With this software, you can securely shred files, wiping hard drive, erase deleted/lost data, etc. It allows you to choose a erasure standard (such as Peter Gutmann, U.S. Army AR380-19, DoD 5220.22-M ECE) to permanently erase data from Mac-based drive, external storage device, digital device, etc. No physical damage! Once the data is erased by DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac , the data is gone forever, can’t be recovered by any method. Before you sell, donate your Mac or give it away, just run this software to erase the Mac data permanently.

Download Mac Data Erasure Tool >>

2. Blancco Drive Eraser:

Blancco Drive Eraser is the best way to delete data, and businesses worldwide believe it. It can safely erase hard drives, solid-state drives (SSDs), and other storage devices. That includes Mac computers' storage devices. Blancco offers certified erasure ways and gives thorough erasure reports for legal reasons.

Download Mac Data Erasure Tool >>

3. Disk Drill:

Disk Drill is a flexible tool for Mac users to recover and delete files. Along with the ability to recover lost data, Disk Drill also has a secure data erasure tool that lets users delete files and entire drives for good. It works with several erasure methods, such as the DoD 5220.22-M standard.

Download Mac Data Erasure Tool >>

4. CCleaner for Mac:

CCleaner is a well-known program for cleaning up and optimizing computers, and it also has a safe way to delete files. CCleaner for Mac is a simple and effective way to delete files safely and free up disk space. It is not as complete as dedicated data-erasing solutions, but it works well enough.

Download Mac Data Erasure Tool >>

5. MacClean360:

MacClean360 is a tool for optimizing Macs with a feature for safely deleting files. It lets users safely delete single files or whole folders so that it can be used for regular data deletion jobs.

Download Mac Data Erasure Tool >>

6. AweEraser for Mac:

AweEraser for Mac is a tool that allows Mac users to delete files. It has several erasing algorithms, such as the Gutmann method and the DoD 5220.22-M standard, ensuring that data is deleted safely and in line with accepted standards.

Download Mac Data Erasure Tool >>

How to Erase Data Permanently on Mac?

DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac is a professional & easy-to-use Mac data erasure program. You can download it from our site, then install it on your Mac.

DoYourData Super Eraser

  • Permanently and securely erase data on Mac.
  • Certified data erasure standards including U.S. Army AR380-19, DoD 5220.22-M ECE, etc.
  • Three flexible erasure modes: Erase Files, Wipe Hard Drive, Wipe Free Space.

The principle of data erasure by DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac is very simple. When you are using DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac to erase Mac data, the software will destroy, shred your data and overwrite the disk space of the data by 0-1 bit. When the process gets finished, the data you have selected to erase will be lost permanently. The erased data can't not be recovered by any data recovery software or manual data recovery method.

The erasure steps are easy:

Step 1. Download and install DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac on your Mac, open it.

Step 2. Choose a erasure mode:

Mode 1. Erase Files - permanently erase files and folders.

Mac data erasure

Mode 2. Wipe Hard Drive - wipe a hard drive to permanently erase all data from it.

Mac data erasure

Mode 3. Wipe Free Space - wipe free disk space to permanently erase all deleted/lost data without affecting the existing data.

Mac data erasure

Step 3. Choose files or hard drive, click on Erase Now or Wipe Now button.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, keeping our info safe on Macs is vital in today's digital world. With reliable data erasure options, we can keep our private data safe from people who shouldn't have access to it, ensure compliance rules are followed, and lower the risk of data breaches.

If Mac users choose the right way to delete data and use trusted software tools, they can safely throw away or reuse their devices without worrying that their data will be recovered. When data security is a top priority, we can feel safe using technology because we know our privacy and security are protected.

FAQs About Mac Data Erasure

1. How to permanently erase files on Mac?

  • Download and install DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac on your Mac.
  • Choose Erase Files mode, then click on Add button to add files and folders.
  • Click on Erase Now button to permanently erase the selected files and folders.

Mac data erasure

2. What is the best Mac data erasure software?

Here is the list of top 10 Mac data erasure software:

  • DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac
  • Disk Drill
  • CCleaner for Mac
  • MacClean360
  • AweEraser for Mac
  • Blancco Drive Eraser
  • Donemax Data Eraser for Mac
  • AweCleaner for Mac
  • Stellar Drive Wipe for Mac
  • Disk Utility

3. How to wipe a hard drive on Mac?

DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac can help you wipe hard drive on Mac. Just open DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac and choose Wipe Hard Drive mode, then select the drive, click on Wipe Now button. It will format and wipe the selected drive, permanently erase all data from it.

Mac data erasure

4. Should I erase data on Mac?

Everybody has secrets. Everybody has some private files that should not be shared. For Mac users, when they will sell or donate their Macs or share Macs with other people, they definitely want to erase some files containing private or business information. As we know that the deleted files (even you have emptied the recycle bin) can be easily recovered by data recovery software like Do Your Data Recovery for Mac. It is not safe when you just delete your private data. The data also can be recovered after you format your Mac hard drive with disk utility.

You can imagine how dangerous it would be when other people can recover and find your very private photos, videos, documents, audio files from your Mac. So it is very important to erase Mac data permanently before you sell/donate or give your Mac to others.

As we said above, deletion or format can't get your Mac data permanently lost. It is possible to recover data after deletion or format. In order to permanently erase Mac data, you can choose a Mac data erasure tool (such as DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac) to securely erase the files or wipe the hard drive.

5. Is it safe to erase Mac SSD?

Yes, DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac is a 100% safe data erasure program. No physical damage, won’t shorten the service life of the Mac SSD.

DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac

DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac

DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac is a 100% safe, powerful and easy-to-use data erasure program. It offers certified data erasure standards including Peter Gutmann, U.S. Army AR380-19, DoD 5220.22-M ECE to permanently erase data from Macs and external devices, making data recovery be impossible.

DoYourData Author

Written & Updated by Shirly Chen

Shirly Chen has been writing data recovery, data erasure articles for DoYourData over 4 years. She has been working as a professional website content writer & editor for quite a long time. She also writes articles about disk clone, Mac optimization, disk backup, etc.

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