IPA IP 2024 Question 63
A question IPA Japan published in 令和6年度 ITパスポート試験 公開問題 問63, translated into English. ITPEC is based on the same exams.
Which of the following is used as a method for erasing all the data on an SSD so that it cannot be restored?
Explanation
Secure Erase — the command that makes an SSD’s own controller erase every flash cell, so no data can be recovered.
An SSD spreads writes over its cells (wear levelling) and keeps spare areas that the OS cannot address, so overwriting files from the PC does not reach every copy of the data. Secure Erase is a command built into the drive (ATA Secure Erase, NVMe Format/Sanitize): the controller itself erases all cells, spare areas included, before the drive is disposed of or reused.
Answer (a)
Why not others:
- •(b) — magnetic erasure (degaussing) scrambles magnetically recorded data on HDDs and tapes; an SSD stores data as electric charge in flash memory, so a magnetic field does not erase it
- •(c) — secure boot checks the digital signatures of the firmware and OS at start-up, against tampering; it erases nothing
- •(d) — data cleansing corrects errors, duplicates and inconsistent formats in data before it is analysed
Key rule: Pick the erasure method by the medium: degaussing or physical destruction for magnetic media, the drive’s Secure Erase (or physical destruction) for SSDs.
Security · AI-written, may contain errors
This question comes from the past questions IPA Japan publishes, translated into English by ITPEC Practice. ITPEC Practice is an independent study tool and is not affiliated with IPA or ITPEC. See the original paper (PDF) or Report an issue.