Erase a CD
If you have a data CD, you can erase the data from it as long as it a rewritable CD. Rewritable CDs are identified with the "CD-RW" designation and can be written on and erased multiple times. Erasing a CD is easy to do within your Microsoft Windows or Mac operating system.
Contents
Steps
Windows XP
- Put the CD you want to erase in your CD drive. Click the "Start" button, and then click on "My Computer."
- Right-click on the drive in which the CD you want to erase is located. Select "Open." Look for the "Erase this CD-RW" option under the "CD Writing Tasks" menu that appears and click it.
- Click "Next" when the "Welcome to the CD Writing Wizard" window appears. A progress will appear, showing the progress of the erasing of your CD. Wait for the process to finish; a confirmation message will appear when the CD has been fully erased.
Windows Vista and Windows 7/8
- Go to the "Start" menu and then click on "Computer" while the CD you want to erase is in your CD drive.
- Click on the icon for the drive that contains the CD you want to erase. Choose "Erase this disc" from the available options.
- Choose "Next" the window that appears when you are ready to erase your CD. Wait for the progress bar to finish. A confirmation message will appear when the erasing has been completed.
Mac OS
- Insert the CD you want to erase in your CD drive. Open the Disk Utility menu either by clicking on "Installer" and then selecting "Open Disk Utility," or by clicking "Utilities" and then selecting "Disk Utility."
- Select the "Erase" tab. Find the list of drives on left of the screen and click on the drive that contains the CD you want to erase.
- Click the "Erase" button and wait for the process to complete. A confirmation message will appear once the CD has been erased.
Secure Erasure
The previous methods will effectively erase the disk so as to prevent casual recovery of the data, however, a determined individual could recover the data given the proper resources. In order to make recovery of the data virtually impossible, follow the following steps.
- In the case of re-writable disk(s), erase the disk(s) with a program of your choice. If possible, choose to do a "Full" erase, rather than a "Quick" erase. After the erase is completed, burn any amount of random insensitive data (such as images, videos, or music that is not private or classified) to the disks full capacity. If you desire, you can erase it again, though the final time is optional.
- Now, physically destroy the disk. Depending on how thorough you require the destruction to be you can achieve this through microwaving the disk (in an old microwave that won't be used for food), and smashing it into tiny pieces. Dispose of it in any way you wish, at this point, recovering any data from the disk would be virtually impossible, even at a facility dedicated to such a task.
Tips
- If you are using Windows Vista or Windows 7, you can partially erase a CD and keep some of the files intact. After clicking on the Start button and then "Computer," double click on the icon of the CD drive. Select a file you want to erase, or select multiple files by holding down the Control button while clicking. Then hit the Delete key to erase the files.
- Data on a recordable CD or CD-R cannot be erased from the disc. If you want to get rid of the data, you will need to destroy the CD itself. Wrap the CD up in a towel and smash it with a hammer to break it into pieces. Or, if you have a shredder that can shred CDs, simply put it through your shredder.
Warnings
- A rewritable CD will can become worn out and lose its ability to store data effectively if written on and erased too many times.
