AOMEI Partition Assistant
Freeware: Delete Files from Flash Drive Permanently and Irrecoverably
Sometimes, you might want to delete files from flash drive permanently to protect your private information. And here we bring the freeware to help you easily delete files from flash drive, SD card, or other hard drives so that they cannot be recovered by anyone.
By Emily / Updated on May 12, 2023
When need to delete files from flash drive permanently?
“Hi. I have a USB flash drive that has been used for about 3 years and now I want to give it away to my litte sister because it is not much use to me anymore. But it contains many important or sensitive files, so I want to permanently delete all my files from the USB flash drive permanently on Windows and avoid data recovery. Any one know how to do it?”
The USB flash drive is a portable and easy-to-carry data storage device, and it becomes a popular method for computer users to back up personal data, or transfer data between different computers. However, sometimes we need to delete files from the USB flash drive completely in order to prevent private information from being abused by the next owner.
Easy steps to delete files from flash drive permanently
When it comes to permanently deleting files from USB flash drive, SD card or other data storage device, many users would use the simple “Delete” option. But actually, the deleted files have not been permanently deleted, and they can be easily recovered with a professional data recovery program. So, it is a not perfect and safe method.
Luckily, you can make use of the freeware (AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard), which can help you permanenetly shred or delete files from USB flash drive. Different from the simple “delete” option, this free partition manager can write zeros to the deleted files to prevent the deleted files from being recovered by anyone else. So, it is a better and safer choice. Next, we will demonstrate how to permanently delete files from USB flash drive on Windows.
Important: please ensure that you have back up any required files to another location before you start to delete them from your USB flash drive.
Step 1. Connect your USB flash drive to a Windows computer and make sure it is detected. Download the freeware, install and launch it on your computer.
Step 2. Click “Wipe” on the upper pane and choose “Shred Files”.
Step 3.Choose “Add Files” option to add the target files. If you want to delete folder from the USB flash drive, select the “Add Folder” instead.
Step 4. Pick the target files on the USB flash drive, or you can directly drag and drop them into this window.
Step 5. Then choose the shredding method: “Write Zero”.
Note: If you want to use another three more advanced methods, you can upgrade to Professional edition.
Step 6. At last, click on “Shred” to start deleting files from the USB flash drive. When this task is completed, you will see the message:All files/folders have been shredded completely.
When you want to delete several files from the USB flash drive permanently, this method is recommended. If you want to delete all files or data from a flash drive completely, you can try the “Wipe Hard Drive” feature, which can erase or wipe clean the flash drive securely and totally. Likewise, it will write zeros to each sector of the flash drive.
Summary
It is easy to delete files from flash drive permanently under the help of the AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard. Apart from the mentioned functions, this partition software also has many other wonderful features: clone USB drive, partition USB flash drive with two partitions, check bad sectors, migrate OS between MBR disk, format large drive to FAT32 easily and more. If you are running Windows Server operating system, its Server edition can be a great choice.
