As 2016 ramps up we have a few important stories to cover and we do. During the Security Tip of the Week our buddy Tim Elliott chimes in with another method to ensure data is wiped on your solid state drive (SSD) before you sell your computer or drive: thermite!

Hosts: Steve Borsch, Tim Elliott and Phil Wilson (Graeme Thickins is off).

Music: Gudbuy T’Jane by Stefan Hösemann under a Creative Commons License

The Podcast

Story Links

Past Week’s Top Minnesota Stories

* Magnet 360 Bought By India-Based Firm For $50M

* Target

* Target CEO Brian Cornell visiting homes of customers

* The Last Days of Target: The untold tale of Target Canada’s difficult birth, tough life and brutal death

* St. Paul native’s tech startup wants to kid-proof your smartphone

* iOS 9.3 adds multi-user support for iPads in schools, new Classroom app, more

* Investment in Minnesota’s digital-health startups surges as med-tech dips

* Connecting the Dots: The Internet Revealed in 1993

Other Top Tech Stories

* IBM Acquires uStream

* NSA Chief Stakes Out Pro-Encryption Position, in Contrast to FBI

* Symphony Advanced Media Software Tracks Your Digital Life Through Your Smartphone Mic

* Music Memos is Apple’s new, simple recording app

* Microsoft kicks off Office Insider program for Mac users

Steve’s Security Tip of the Week

TIP: How to really erase your hard drive…especially if it’s an SSD. Tossing your file into the computer’s trash and emptying it doesn’t delete your data. It just erases the file’s reference information in the disk directory, marking the blocks as free for reuse. Your data is still there, and can be recovered. Wiping an SSD incorrectly can cause such wear as to significantly reduce it’s life.

* Reference Links:

* ZDNet: How to really erase any drive — even SSDs — in 2016

* Thermite…really Tim? TekThing 51: Thermite, Acid,