Difference between "Empty trash" and "Secure Empty trash"

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Level 1

21 points

Difference between "Empty trash" and "Secure Empty trash"

Hi everyone,

Today I used the "Secure Empty Trash" function by pressing the options key while "right clicking" on the trash. And in the message it said that if I empty the trash that way, I won't be able to recover the data. Which is what I wanted and is ok. But then the way it's said makes you think that if you don't do it that way then the normal "Empty Trash" doesn't really empty the trash and gives you the possibility of take the data back even after emptying the trash.

I know some programs can help you do that. Either they recuperate the data after being installed separately or it's a sort of backup program like some by Norton on Windows were basically it backs up the Windows trash. But my question is, when they say with the "Empty Trash" message that you can recuperate the data, does it mean with one of those external programs or is there a hidden folder somewhere on Mac OS X where I can find all the stuff that ever went in my trash ?

Thanks for your help !

MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.7.4)

Posted on Oct 21, 2012 9:29 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

Niel

Level 10

726,827 points

Oct 21, 2012 10:14 AM in response to smashr

There is no hidden folder. Both the regular and secure options remove the references to the deleted items from the disk's directory. In addition, the secure option overwrites the disk space formerly occupied by those files.

(70950)

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Answer 2

smashr Author

Level 1

21 points

Oct 21, 2012 11:22 AM in response to Niel

Ok thanks a lot ! But why does it state that the data can't be retrieved then ? This implies there is a way to retrieve it.

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Answer 3

Nibz-Ay

Level 1

4 points

Jun 7, 2014 9:21 AM in response to smashr

emptying the trash the normal way, deletes the reference of where the files exist on the hard disk, and shows the space these files occupy as empty space, now its deleted, and you can use whatever space these files used before deleting them, but you can use some pro apps that recover lost data, specially in case of mistaken deletion, as long as the sectors these files used on the hard disk were not used to store on by other data.

while emptying the trash securely, does the same of normal emptying but it makes an additional step of over writing the sectors of the hard used by these data an amount of times, so its impossible for pro apps that recover data to read anything was stored on the hard disk after secure deletion.

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