Privacy matters, especially when you are about to resell or donate your old Mac or hard drive. You never know whose hand your device is going to end up with.
If the person who takes your device is a computer geek, chances are they might be able to recover your private data — even if you have deleted them by emptying Mac Trash.
That’s why you’ll want to make sure none of your personal information is retrievable. The best solution? Using a Mac file shredder app!
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Why Do You Need to Shred Your Files?
Let’s start with the basics. When you drag a file or folder to Mac Trash and then delete it there, or you delete it from an external hard disk drive, the file isn’t removed permanently at least for quite some time.
What happens is your file or folder is simply erased from the file directory of your Mac or external HDD. By using a third-party Mac data recovery software, you can recover it provided that it is not overwritten — i.e. you haven’t added new files to your Mac or the external drive.
To make that file unrecoverable, you can either keep saving new large items to that drive manually or use a third-party app to do so automatically. The former option can be quite time-consuming and it’s often not secure because you can’t tell whether the space contained in that file or folder is occupied or not, particularly if your hard drive has a large volume. That’s why a Mac shredder utility comes into play.
The Best File Shredder for Mac Reviewed
Depending on whether you want to permanently delete files/folders, or securely erase a hard disk drive, we’ve got some best apps that work with the latest macOS.
1. CleanMyMac Shredder
CleanMyMac is mainly used to deep clean your Mac to help you free up more disk space, the app also comes with a small utility — Shredder, which you can use to remove data quickly from your Mac hard drive without leaving any trace.
The app is perfect for those of you who want to keep your Mac clean and fast, while also protecting your privacy by permanently removing some files that are sensitive.
Pros:
- The Shredder utility erases files quickly.
- It also comes with a set of other excellent tools to maintain your Mac performance, great value.
- Sleek software interface makes it incredibly easy to use.
Cons:
- It only works to erase files, NOT able to wipe an entire drive.
- You can’t select a particular wiping algorithm.
2. Stellar BitRaser File Eraser
Stellar BitRaser for Mac is a Mac shredder app primarily designed to permanently wipe an external drive. When you launch the app you’ll see three wiping modes listed on its main interface: Files & Folders, Unused Space, Traces.
The app also allows you to choose a secure wiping mechanism, e.g. only erase several files or the entire hard drive. All wiped items and drives will be permanently deleted and beyond data recovery.
Pros:
- It offers different wipe modes, which should meet your custom needs.
- You can select wiping algorithms, e.g. Zeros, DoD 5220.22-M, Peter Gutmann 35-pass, etc.
- It allows you to schedule wiping tasks so you can wipe specific file types at the specified time.
Cons:
- Can be quite time-consuming if you select a higher standard wiping algorithm.
- Software UI/UX could be improved.
3. MacClean File Eraser
MacClean is another great shredder app while its core value is cleaning. It has a File Eraser feature that allows you to quickly delete items you want to get rid of permanently. The software is super easy to use.
If you are looking for an all-in-one system utility to protect and clean your Mac machine, this is the app to go for.
Pros:
- Quick and easy to erase files.
- It also contains a number of other useful Mac utilities.
Cons:
- It doesn’t provide different security options regarding wiping algorithms.
Are there any other Mac shredder apps that you’ve used and turned out to be great? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
