Does Eraser uses a Crypto PRNG?

[DavidXanatos]

Does Eraser: http://www.heidi.ie/node/6 uses an Cryptographic PRNG so that it is good enough to cleaning the unused space of a TC volume prior to creation of an Hidden volume?

I know that a new TC volume is filled with really good Random data, but the above consideration is meant for recycling TC volumes ...

[truthseeker]

{QUOTE-> Does Eraser: http://www.heidi.ie/node/6 uses an Cryptographic PRNG so that it is good enough to cleaning the unused space of a TC volume prior to creation of an Hidden volume?

I know that a new TC volume is filled with really good Random data, but the above consideration is meant for recycling TC volumes ... <-QUOTE}

I am not familar with Cryptographic PRNG and in all honesty I do not fully understand your question. However, put it this way.... If you use Eraser with multiple wipes, nobody on Earth will be able to retrieve the erased data :thumb:

[KookyMan]

You shouldn't need to prepare a volume. Unless you created a sparse volume in the first place AND / OR didn't completely format the volume when you created it.

All TrueCrypt volumes if you format them when you create them fill the entire drive with random data.

[DavidXanatos]

@KookyMan
As said its meant for recycling, like the volume was once filled 90% than emptyd to 50% and defraged, and than the free space was refiled with random data to put a hidden container of40% size in it.
And this action obviously needs a PRNG that's output cant be identified as not really random random data.
Otherwise an adversary would see relay random data embedded in not really random data and thats bad, very bad....

[huangker]

I don't think whether you use truly random data or not should affect disk wiping. Once you wipe over it, what is underneath is hard to detect. You can write over it with 0s and 1s and it should be ok.

[KookyMan]

Actually, it would Huangker. He's talking about having the password entered in for the outer container, so you have direct access to the disk and can see the 1's/0's, and then if you start running into an area that is real random, you'll have to account for it.

The only thing I could suggest would be to write another TC container to the disk in that area, the size of the remaining disk space, and then delete it. That would have the same effect. (Defrag first obviously.)

That's basically how Eraser works, and then you'd be getting the same quality of random number generation.