Re: SDD partitioning and allocations
On 2025-07-16, Andy Smith <andy@strugglers.net> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> On Wed, Jul 16, 2025 at 04:31:08PM -0000, Greg wrote:
>> On 2025-07-12, Andy Smith <andy@strugglers.net> wrote:
>> > But for brand new devices I don't care what was on it before.
>> >
>> > You can construct a hypothetical situation where:
>> >
>> > 1. I buy a new storage device but am unwittingly given a refurb one
>> > (that has had its diagnostic attributes erased to maintain the
>> > illusion that it is new).
>> > 2. For some reason law enforcement seize my computer, scan the storage
>> > and find something illegal that was on it already in unused space.
>>
>> https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/12/5928?utm_source=chatgpt.com
>
> This one concerns USB storage bought on the TradeMe web site, which
> appears to be a marketplace a bit like eBay. I didn't thoroughly read it
> but I didn't spot anywhere that clarified whether they sought out drives
> described as brand new or not. The fact that they bought 17 and found
> data on 15 suggests to me that they just bought second hand storage, so
> not at all surprising.
>
>> https://www.reddit.com/r/privacy/comments/181241a/amazon_sold_me_a_drive_it_came_with_data_on_it/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
>>
>> https://indiandefencereview.com/a-man-bought-a-new-hard-drive-but-upon-plugging-it-in-he-discovered-800gb-of-files-worth-thousands/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
>
> If either of the above stories are true (note they do both come from
> reddit) they read like advice to check that storage devices that you buy
> as new actually *are* new.
How do you do that? It seems that assuming nothing and performing a
secure erase upon arrival is a no-brainer.
> If any of that happened to me then I would be getting a refund for it
> not being as described, not carrying on using it. None of it persuades
> me to secure erase new storage devices, "just in case." But if it makes
> someone happy, I suppose there are worse ways for them to spend their
> time.
>
> Thanks,
> Andy
>
Reply to: