BlackBelt Wipes Data From Personal DevicesBlackBelt Wipes Data From Personal Devices

Cabe Atwell

March 4, 2013

2 Min Read
BlackBelt Wipes Data From Personal Devices

With the increasing demand for recycled and refurbished electronics, and the growing phone-selling market online, a need for safeguarding one's private data has become an important issue in a progressively computerized world. In other words, beware of the data-scouring fiends that patiently await your recycled smartphones.

"Identity theft is not a joke, Jim. Millions of families suffer every year," Dwight Schrute exclaims to Jim Halpert after Jim shows up to work wearing the exact same outfit as Dwight -- a classic reference from The Office. It is true; it does happen to millions of people every year. With the incredible amounts of data being stored on smartphones that are capable of just about anything nowadays, large amounts of personal data may be at risk if not taken care of properly.

So how do we avoid this problem? BlackBelt Defence seems to have a grip on things with its recently introduced DataWipe software algorithm that claims to securely erase data on all memory chips including solid-state drives and Flash memory.

The typical Flash memory drive contains its own onboard memory protection algorithm known as wear leveling. This process functions as a means of leveling out the amount of wear each individual memory block on the chip suffers due to each write/copy cycle. This is done in order to extend the lifetime of each cell's ability to store a charge by re-mapping the contents of the internal memory on each subsequent write cycle. Thus, it does not allow a complete overwrite of the memory cells to happen. The problem here is that traditional data wiping processes used by recycling and refurbishing companies use an overwriting technique that is meant for CDs, DVDs, and the like, but not SSD and Flash memory.

This is where BlackBelt Defence's new DataWipe software makes its case. Unlike other data deletion methods, its algorithm works alongside the wear leveling process to completely wipe all data from a memory chip. Some other key benefits of the software include reduced operational overheads, fully traceable audit trails, brand identity safeguarding, customer data protection, and a user-friendly interface.

BlackBelt's software seems very worthy of its name for the protection it offers to companies and individuals concerned with safeguarding their data. Though the company claims it still may not be able to avoid high-tech security attacks that employ electron microscopes, it is still the best data protection software available commercially. So much so that the British government is considering it for an award. So if you are feeling paranoid about selling your phone on eBay, consider getting yourself a BlackBelt for protection. BlackBelt DataWipe, that is.

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About the Author

Cabe Atwell

Cabe is an electrical engineer, machinist, maker, cartoonist, and author with 25 years’ experience. When not designing/building, he creates a steady stream of projects and content in the media world at element14, Hackster.io, MAKE ─ among others. His most recent book is “Essential 555 IC: Design, Configure, and Create Clever Circuits.

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