Editing Data remanence (section)

===Clearing===

'''Clearing''' is the removal of sensitive data from storage devices in such a way that there is assurance that the data may not be reconstructed using normal system functions or software file/data recovery utilities. The data may still be recoverable, but not without special laboratory techniques.<ref name="SP800-88">{{cite web
 | url=http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/drafts/800-88-rev1/sp800_88_r1_draft.pdf
 | title=Special Publication 800-88: Guidelines for Media Sanitization Rev. 1
 | publisher=[[National Institute of Standards and Technology|NIST]]
 |date=6 September 2012|access-date=2014-06-23
}} (542 KB)</ref>

Clearing is typically an administrative protection against accidental disclosure within an organization. For example, before a [[hard drive]] is re-used within an organization, its contents may be cleared to prevent their accidental disclosure to the next user.