App to swipe/overwrite data, broken screen

[JrFish]

Does anyone know of an app I can use that will delete all data from a phone, from a PC without having to get into the phone? I have to return this POJunk to seller, and the screen has completely failed. I would like to overwrite all data on the internal drive before I send it back.

I have already factory reset it remotely. Phone turns on, is unlocked, is seen by my W10 system and I get into it from there, but no display. I still would like to overwrite everything before someone else gets it. I tried the Wondershare Mobile...whatever app. Phone does not connect with it. Kies doesn't seem to have this capability either.

Would really appreciate any solutions. Doesn't need to be a free app either. I'll pay a few bucks, but need to do something quickly and get this thing on its way back.
TIA!
Jim

 

[FoxKat]

Does anyone know of an app I can use that will delete all data from a phone, from a PC without having to get into the phone? I have to return this POJunk to seller, and the screen has completely failed. I would like to overwrite all data on the internal drive before I send it back.

I have already factory reset it remotely. Phone turns on, is unlocked, is seen by my W10 system and I get into it from there, but no display. I still would like to overwrite everything before someone else gets it. I tried the Wondershare Mobile...whatever app. Phone does not connect with it. Kies doesn't seem to have this capability either.

Would really appreciate any solutions. Doesn't need to be a free app either. I'll pay a few bucks, but need to do something quickly and get this thing on its way back.
TIA!
Jim

Unfortunately I've not seen an app that works all the time on all phones, and most require root access.

It's suggested that you encrypt the entire phone, then Factory Data Restore, then either your good to go, or if you wish do the same again.

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

 

[FoxKat]

Please refrain from posting the same question in two separate forums as it is in violation against the forum guidelines. I have placed that other thread into moderation and I will be deleting it and merging the content into this thread.

Also, I will be moving this thread into the S5 forum for proper addressing by members.

I've already answered your question based on the original content you provided here. That's not to say there may not be others who may have a better answer, which is why posting in the proper forum, namely the one for your phone (this one), is the best way to get support. I would expect that if anyone has an answer for you that is better than what I've given you are most likely to get that answer from someone who is personally familiar with your specific phone. Getting an answer for a phone with as deeply a customized OS as the Samsung phones, by asking in a generic Android tech support thread will likely be less fruitful.

Now in that other thread (copied below), you've added pertinent information not originally offered, regarding the fact the screen is no longer functioning. This makes getting higher level access to the phone even more difficult. Still, I will say again here that these so-called "wipe" tools, said to overwrite the static RAM in the phones in most cases do nothing, in some cases do some but I've come across none that work 100%. One of the biggest problems is that it takes a very long time to truly overwrite every bit address on the static RAM, and just running it once is almost guaranteed to leave at least a significant portion of data still on the drive and recoverable.

Part of the function of static RAM is to swap out portions of RAM and cycle through them in the writing of data into overheard storage space to help protect from loss of data. It's perhaps a helpful analogy to use a screen saver on a monitor which moves images around on the screen to prevent burn-in. In the case of RAM, this means that even if you wipe the storage, pieces of the data may still reside in that overhead portion and can still be recovered later. It would take numerous overwriting of the RAM to be sure to have wiped clean ALL RAM addresses including whatever may have been swapped into and out of the overhead RAM.

Finally, accomplishing this without a screen may be nearly impossible without expensive hardware designed specifically for this purpose. I am hoping someone else will have additional information that can help you.

Original content in the duplicate thread which may be helpful;

Short story is, screen not functioning. I will be sending it back to Seller. Is there an app that will actually overwrite all data on drive which can work from a PC without having to make user input on the phone?

I factory reset it remotely, but still would like to actually clean the drive with an overwrite. I tried the Wondershare Mobile...whatever app. Phone does not connect with it. Wants me to get into USB Debugging settings. Kies doesn't seem to have this capability either. System is Win10 and phone is Samsung S5. I am assuming OS on phone is 5.0.2

Would really appreciate any ideas. Doesn't need to be a free app either. I'll pay a few bucks, but need to do something quickly and get this thing on its way back.
TIA!
Jim

 

[JrFish]

Thanks for the input and giving my situation some thought. Also, phone is an S6. I mistyped that above stating it was an S5. Sorry.

 

[FoxKat]

Thanks for the input and giving my situation some thought. Also, phone is an S6. I mistyped that above stating it was an S5. Sorry.

That's OK. So I'll move the thread to the S6 forum. Hopefully someone will have better suggestions.

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