Tech Guide 3 by IP! Actually DELETING a file.

Techheads, read this.

When you delete a file, YOU DO NOT DELETE IT

To actually delete something, read my 3rd tech guide.

Once again, M rated for messed up formatting...

1.A: File Deletion

This may sound extremely obvious and not even worth reading about, but there's more to deleting a file than you may think. When you 'delete' a file, you clear the front end of it, meaning you cannot use the file or find it on your PC. But it hasn't been deleted. The back end of the file and all its data still exists. It will be overwritten over a long period of time, but here's how to fully delete any files.
1: Download a File shredder. The best one can be found here: http://goo.gl/tlDF
2: Download and install Advanced SystemCare: http://goo.gl/9wSPG
3: After installing it, close the program and go to your desktop.
4: Create a folder called 'junk' or whatever you choose.
5: Right click on your recycle bin and click 'Undeleter' from the drop-down menu.
6: Select the option to recover all file types and restore them to a custom folder. Navigate to the 'junk' folder on your desktop.
7: Let it recover the files. Depending on how long you have had the computer for without doing a file clearout the recovery may take a considerable amount of time.
8: When it completes, click 'Finish' and close the window. Return to your desktop, right click on the 'junk' folder, click 'File Shredder' and click 'Secure Delete Files'. Click 'OK' and let it shred them. This may take a while depending on the number of files. Let it finish, however long it takes. You can use your PC as normal during the shredding process.

You have succcessfully cleaned your PC of back-end files! Now that you have done this, never do a standard delete on your files. Always shred them to prevent a build-up

Very good point. Many people donate or get rid of old computers or devices without realizing that data that has been "deleted" or erased can still be recovered by people with the right know-how. I have personally been using CCleaner on my pc for years to securely delete files I wish to never be recovered. Also, for iDevices, before just trading them in getting rid of them, do a full restore then create a blank playlist as large as the available space on hard drive and sync device. Delete and resync, repeating several times. Since there isn't an app for these devices to securely delete files this will essentially write blank data over old data making it harder for people to pull any information off the hard drive later.

Exactly. And the great thing about CCleaner is that you can select a secure deletion method, set it going, and it will shred data in the background.