Top 10 Worst Passwords Of 2016 You Should Never Keep, Else You’re A Dumbo

The year 2016 was rough regarding data security and the thing that enhances the frustration of the advocates of cyber security is the pathetic choice of passwords people have on the internet. Keeper Security has released the list of the most popular (worst) passwords used in 2016. It is highly recommended to set a password that is strong and can’t be guessed easily.

Apassword is used to protect people’s devices and online accounts from unauthorized access. But some people just don’t get it and make sure that their password is the dumbest of all. Seriously, it’s 2017 now. Your internet life is as important as your real one unless you’re some wannabe cave dweller hiding somewhere in the forests of Amazon.

Keeper Security has released the list of the most common passwords for 2016, but I would like to call them the ‘worst passwords’ and people should avoid using passwords which are guessable.

THE AWARD FOR THE MOST POPULAR PASSWORD FOR 2016 GOES TO 123456.

Last year was full of different data breaches. Yahoo Inc. (Altaba Inc. in the future) announced their huge data leak involving 1 billion accounts. The research team at Keeper Security was able to harvest and analyze 10 million publicly available passwords that resulted from various data breaches last year.

Top 10 Worst Passwords You Should Never Keep

Rank	String
1.	123456
2.	123456789
3.	qwerty
4.	12345678
5.	111111
6.	1234567890
7.	1234567
8.	password
9.	123123
10.	987654321

The actual list includes 25 passwords which account for around 50% of the 10 million passwords. Most of these passwords are predictable as hell, even if they’re long. An interesting thing is the password 18atcskd2w0, which is assumed to be used by internet bots which create online accounts and spread spam messages.

It has been advised to keep a secure password with alphabets, numbers, and special characters. Cracking a simple password is a child’s play for password cracking software which use brute-force technique to guess it. And the people who think, Why would anyone hack me?”, won’t even get a chance to regret after their details get compromised.

The Reason Why C Programming Language Was Named C

The first thing that comes to our mind for the term programming language is C. It is a decade old general-purpose high-level programming language which has defied all norms of popularity. The language has been given the name C because it succeeds another language called B.

Cis one of the most popular computer programming languages which has existed since the last 44 years. It was created by the famous American programmer Dennis Ritchie – with the help of Ken Thompson – while working at Bell Labs. Most of us have this curiosity that why is the programming language named after a single alphabet. And why it is C, not any other letter. Anyways, we would have questioned the name of the programming language even if a different letter was used. So, let’s focus on the story instead.

The naming of C doesn’t involve any crunchy fiction story, like in the case the Linux Penguin Tux. It is said Linus Torvalds, the creator of Linux, contracted penguinitis after a man-eating penguin running at 100-miles per hour attacked him.

Because C comes after B

The reason why the language was named “C” by its creator was that it came after B language. Back then, Bell Labs already had a programming language called “B” at their disposal. The B language, a high-level language created by Thompson, was itself an implementation of the programming language BCPL designed by Martin Richards of Cambridge University.

The Unix operating system was originally created at Bell Labs by Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, and others. It was implemented on the PDP-7 (manufactured by Digital Equipment Corporation in 1965) computer using the assembly language. Later, Unix was ported to PDP-11 using assembly language but the developers thought about rewriting it using B language.

The B language fell short of abilities to take benefit of the features offered by the newer member of the PDP series, the PDP-11. That’s when Dennis Ritchie started working on a new high-level programming language taking clues from B language. C had a great influence on the Unix operating system. In fact, most of the Unix system including a big part of its kernel is now available in C language.

C has been improved from time to time since its initial release. That’s the reason it’s still a part of the curriculum in many schools around the world and it is the 2nd popular programming language. The language has been an inspiration to many other programming languages like C++, C#, Java, PHP, etc.

If you have something to add, tell us in the comments below.

Debian GNU/Linux 8.7 Released (Update: ISOs Now Available)

The Debian Project has released the seventh update of Debian 8 Jessie. This release ships with tons of security updates, bug fixes, and updated packages. The existing users of Debian 8 need to point the apt package tool to one of the updated Debian mirrors and get the update. The new installation media and ISO images are yet to be published.

Update: Debian 8.7’s ISO images are now available for download. It can be grabbed via these mirrors or download the installation images from here.

Back in early 2015, Debian 8.0 Jessie was released after spending two years in development. This release switched back to GNOME as the default desktop environment choice. Now, the Debian Project is here with the latest update to this long-standing Linux distribution.

The seventh update of Debian 8, i.e. Debian GNU/Linux 8.7, has just been released. As expected, this release fixes tons of existing security issues. Notably, many of the included security advisories were already published and referenced.

Long time Linux users must be knowing that security is one of the primary concern of the Debian Project. The project handles all security-related issues brought to their attention and ensures their fixes in a reasonable time limit.

The release notes for Debian 8.7 include many bug fixes and security updates, which you can find here. The release has 80+ bugfixes and 80+ security patches.

One should also note that Debian GNU/Linux 8.7 isn’t a new version of Debian. Instead, it includes security updates and updated packages. So, if you’re already running Debian 8 Jessie, you don’t need to perform a fresh install. Just update via an updated Debian mirror to get all the new packages.

At the moment, new installation media and CD/DVD images are yet to be published. We’ll be updating the article when the ISO images will be available.

Did you find the Debian GNU/Linux 8.7 release exciting? Don’t forget to share your feedback.

Donald Trump: ‘Full Report’ On Hacking In First 90 Days

President-elect Donald Trump said his administration would produce a full report on hacking within the first 90 days of his presidency and accused “my political opponents and a failed spy” of making “phony allegations” against him.

“Totally made up facts by sleazebag political operatives, both Democrats and Republicans,” Trump said in a Twitter post Friday, adding in a later tweet, “My people will have a full report on hacking within 90 days!’’

In a flurry of early morning messages, the president-elect also suggested that the intelligence community had leaked damaging information about his alleged ties to Russia, after news reports published information about a dossier claiming the Kremlin had compromised him.

“Russia says nothing exists,’’ Trump said on Twitter. “Probably released by ‘Intelligence’ even knowing there is no proof, and never will be.’’

In messages sent before many Americans reported to work, Trump took to social media to share with the public his thoughts on a range of issues Friday, including congressional moves to repeal Obamacare — calling it the “‘Unaffordable’ Care Act” — and the testimony of his cabinet nominees which has sometimes differed from his stated views.

Trump also commented on the Justice Department’s internal probe into the FBI’s handling of Hillary Clinton’s use of a private e-mail server Friday, denouncing the reaction by Clinton aides who said again Thursday that Comey cost her the election.

Trump said investigators had been “nice’’ to Clinton and that the former secretary of state’s loss in the presidential race could not be attributed to actions by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the final days of the campaign.

“What are Hillary Clinton’s people complaining about with respect to the F.B.I.,’’ Trump said on Twitter. “Based on the information they had she should never have been allowed to run – guilty as hell. They were VERY nice to her. She lost because she campaigned in the wrong states – no enthusiasm!’’

SyntaxDB — A Perfect Programming Syntax “Search Engine” For Coders | Padsa Information

SyntaxDB calls itself a programming syntax database that wishes to eliminate the need to use Google to search syntax during coding. It allows you to search your syntax queries and shows you helpful results along with further documentation. Currently, SyntaxDB supports nine popular programming languages.

Very often programmers new to the field ask if is it okay to use Google and Stack Overflow to look up some syntax. The answer is yes — searching the web is a routine task of a good developer and its frequency even increases with time. Using Google doesn’t make you a bad programmer. Instead, it makes you even better at it and teaches you new things.

To make things even easier for programmers, Anthony Nguyen, a software developer studying at Queen’s University, has created SyntaxDB.

This website calls itself the programming syntax database and allows you to search your required query. Nguyen calls it helpful for those who often visit Google to look for their programming related queries.

The website’s home page is very simple and plain. You just need to enter a language or a concept, and it starts showing relevant suggestions. As soon as you hit enter, a search result page is shown to address your query.

Once you click on a concept, you are shown a small definition and syntax along with some related notes and examples. In the right sidebar, there are links to the official documentations for more help.

Currently, SyntaxDB supports 9 languages — Java, C, C++, C#, Python, Ruby, JavaScript, Swift, and Go.

SyntaxDB also offers integrations with DuckDuckGo, Slack, and Visual Studio Code to make coding easier. There’s also an API available that lets you write your own integration.

In future, the website plans to provide more plugins for code editors and increase the size of the database and the number of programming languages.

Did you find this article helpful? Don’t forget to drop your feedback in the comments section below.

How to become an ethical hacker | Padsa Information

An essential guide to becoming an ethical hacker

I often get a number of people ask for guidance  about how they can become an ethical hacker. I also receive even more requests about how to become a black hat hacker. The latter requests are ignored. below is a definition of an ethical hacker

Ethical hacker

1. A person who hacks into a computer network in order to test or evaluate its security, rather than with malicious or criminal intent.

So if you want to be an ethical hacker the truth is there is no easy method to become a skilled hacker…… it’s easy to be a script kiddie and load up Armitage or Fast-track and fire every exploit known to man at a target. But what’s the point at firing Linux exploits at a Windows box!.

You need essential prerequisite knowledge

If you want to get into the IT  security world as a white hat you must be competent in the following areas:

• Networking
• Programming
• Databases
• Operating systems (Linux and Windows)

Once you have a fairly good knowledge of the above points THEN it would a good idea to learn about hacking. So now you have a good understanding of the fundamentals of IT, you can now understand how to break some of the underlying vulnerabilities within computer architecture. The following activities should help you with this:

What areas to concentrate on in order to build a foundation

Networking – Cisco courses seem to be really good. I undertook all the CCNA courses available.
Programming – Focus on learning C++, Python/Ruby and PHP.
Databases – Play around with MySQL and MSSQL and make your own database to understand how it works.
Operating systems – Most flavours of Linux are the similar to one another, I use Debian on a lot of servers and of course Kali. Additionally it is worth understanding the more obscure areas of Windows such as the registry.

Read books about hacking (Here are some good examples of some)

• The Web Application Hacker’s Handbook: Finding and Exploiting Security Flaws
• Hacking: The Art of Exploitation, 2nd Edition
• The Basics of Hacking and Penetration Testing: Ethical Hacking and Penetration Testing Made Easy
• Metasploit: The Penetration Tester’s Guide
• CEH Certified Ethical Hacker All-in-One Exam Guide
• Google Hacking for Penetration Testers

Undertake FREE ethical hacking courses.

These are very good for learning but won’t give you an industry recognised qualification, however they will teach you a lot about different areas of ethical hacking which will help towards recognised qualifications.

You can register for a free Cibrary account to do a free ethical hacking course at the following link –

Click Here to register

Undertake Recognised Online courses

These course are all paid for, however they are industry recognised and will help you find a job in the IT security sector.

• CEH
• OSCP
• CISSP

Communicate and follow other fellow IT security enthusiasts through the following mediums

• Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hacking-News-Tutorials/252350961471136 )
• Google+
• Twitter

Self learn by watching online tutorials

• www.securitytube.net
• www.youtube.com

Download practice environments to practice and hone newly learned skills

• DVWA (Dam Vulnerable Web Application)
• Metasploitable2
• Samurai WTF

Final note: Hacking is something that takes A LOT of your time!, be prepared to sacrifice friendships, relationships and that awesome social life you used to have!

Why should you choose java as your primary programming language | Padsa Information

Java is a high-level object oriented programming language and computing platform developed by Sun Microsystems and released in 1995. With more than 9 million developers worldwide, java enables us to develop and deploy applications and services.

From laptops to data centers, game consoles to super computers and cell phones to the Internet, java is everywhere.

Why Choose java?

Although there are many reasons why a software developer choose java, below are some of the popular reasons:

• Develop software on one platform and deploy it on virtually any other platform.
• Create programs that can run in a web browser and access available web services.
• Develop server-side applications like online stores, polls, image galleries, form processing and more.
• Create powerful applications for mobile phones and other embedded devices.

JRE provides the run-time engine JVM along with the class libraries which contains the predefined functionality.

Using JDK programmers can create and run Java programs. But with JRE alone, programmers or users can only run already compiled Java programs. We cannot create Java programs using only JRE.

The JVM specification is a document which contains formal information about what a JVM implementation should contain. A single specification allows various interoperable implementations.

What should I know before moving further?

Although no technical details about programming languages are needed, you should have knowledge regarding basic concepts like what is a program, programming, use of programming languages etc. This java tutorial is developed in such way that it allows beginners or starters to understand every concept with as less effort as needed.

Although no knowledge is required regarding other programming languages, familiarity with C or C++ allows you to learn the java concepts faster.

Intended Audience

This java tutorial is intended for beginners or starters who are new to java. It will also act as a guide for novice programmers and experienced programmers to recollect the use of various core concepts in Java.

Take your time to comment on this article.

Linux Filesystems Explained — EXT2/3/4, XFS, Btrfs, ZFS | Padsa Information

Linux is known for supporting the most filesystems out of all operating systems. There are many retro ones, there are the tried and true, and then there are the next generation filesystems with amazing features. There are so many, in fact, that it can be extremely daunting to the average user, and more so for the FOSS newcomer.

The first time I installed Ubuntu on my computer, when I was sixteen, I was astonished by the number of filesystems that were available for the system installation. There were so many that I was left overwhelmed and confused. I was worried that if I picked the wrong one my system might run too slow or that it might be more problematic than another. I wanted to know which was the best.

Since then, things have changed quite a bit. Many Linux distributions offer a ‘standard’ filesystem that an installation will default to unless otherwise specified. I think this was a very good move because it assists newcomers in making a decision and being comfortable with it. But, for those that are still unsure of some of the contemporary offerings, we’ll be going through them today.

EXT2/3/4:

Extended Filesystem is by far the most popular filesystem among Linux desktop installations. It has been tried and tested, it is no doubt a solid and stable filesystem. It supports all of the standard features of the Linux kernel like quotas, POSIX attributes, and ACLs, so it still a viable solution for a desktop or server. However, there are no plans to create a new iteration of the EXT4 filesystem. The authors have decided to let it go praising Btrfs as the next defacto for Linux.

XFS:

XFS is the recommended solution for Red Hat Enterprise Linux since release 7. It has a rich history in supercomputing and server use dating back to its introduction in IRIX OS in 1994, which is probably part of why Red Hat is advocating its use. There are, however, some key disadvantages to using XFS. The most notable of the disadvantages is the lack of data checksums or ECC leaving it susceptible to silent data corruption, otherwise known as “bit rot,” making the lack of transparent compression, the ability to shrink a volume, or the inability to snapshot the volume without external tools and freezing I/O the least of your concerns.

Despite these shortcomings, XFS is known for being very stable and very fast due to its optimized parallel I/O, and if you can compensate for the demerits, it makes a very solid solution. But if you’re only running on commodity hardware, I’d recommend something that will ensure your data’s integrity like any of the others on this list.

Btrfs:

Btrfs is the new kid on the block with a cool jacket and fancy shoes. Btrfs really blows away the competition with a repertoire of features. Btrfs is a filesystem that does not need administration once it has been implemented, that is, you should never have to run an fsck on it. Whenever any errors or inconsistencies arise, it should just handle them on its own and be on its way. That’s a very big value for many, especially those that are not technically able enough to unmount the volume and run a full filesystem check.

In addition to not needing human intervention, it also plays the roles of volume manager and RAID controller. That means that you don’t have to rely on three separate facilities to accomplish robust redundant (or performance) storage anymore, which is a large value to even those that are technically inclined. Btrfs is hailed as the next generation filesystem for Linux users, and it’s easy to see why, though, it does not lend itself to all applications equally without first tweaking the defaults, but it’s surely a good choice for a desktop solution.

ZFS:

ZFS is like the very intimidating nemesis of Btrfs, complete with neck beard. While ZFS predates Btrfs by four or five years, conceptually, they share a lot. ZFS has a very strong track record of reliability and robustness. Although, due to conflicting licenses, it cannot be shipped with Linux, something which Canonical is currently challenging with Ubuntu. As of now, in order to run ZFS, you must install software from third party repositories, and having a ZFS root volume can be very tricky or simply impossible with some distributions. While ZFS is a world-class heavyweight in the domain of filesystems, it is likely that it will always be a foreign resident on Linux systems.

These are just the contemporary filesystems, there are many other filesystems that Linux supports that have either died out or faded away into obscurity like ReiserFS. According to Wiki, there are 36 filesystems supported directly by the Linux kernel including those of Windows and OS X and at least a couple dozen more through FUSE.

So, I think the one thing that really hasn’t changed since the first time I installed Ubuntu on my computer is the amount of choice. The amount of choice is daunting, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

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Top 10 Best Free Data Recovery Software of 2017 | Padsa Information

Padsa Information brings you a list of the best data recovery software of 2016 which are totally free. These data recovery tools save a lot of hassles after we accidently delete some important files or we do not take backups before formatting a hard drive. Using these free recovery software, you can recover your data back on your PC.

We lose our important data from hard disk by accidentally pressing the Delete key. Sometimes, a software bug or virus can also corrupt your hard disk. In that case, you need the best data recovery software or a recovery tool to recover your important data back at any cost.At this point of time, a data recovery software comes in handy. We have compiled a list of best free data recovery software considering factors such as whether the software can recover RAW, Unallocated, Corrupt or Formatted Hard Disk; its ability to recover from different file systems such as FAT, FAT32, HFS, NTFS etc.; the array of devices supported; time

At this point of time, a data recovery software comes in handy. We have compiled a list of best free data recovery software considering factors such as whether the software can recover RAW, Unallocated, Corrupt or Formatted Hard Disk; its ability to recover from different file systems such as FAT, FAT32, HFS, NTFS etc.; the array of devices supported; time taken for file recovery and user friendliness to name a few. Let’s take a look at some of the best data recovery software:

Top 10 Best Data Recovery Software 2016 for free:

1. Recuva:

The fact that Recuva is on the top of the best data recovery software list, may not come as a surprise to the most of you. Some of the features that bring Recuva on top of the list of Best recovery software are:

• Superior file recovery
• Advanced deep scan mode
• Secure overwrite feature that uses industry & military standard deletion techniques and,
• Ability to recover files from damaged or newly formatted files
• Easy User interface

2. TestDisk:

A list of best data recovery software can hardly be termed as being complete without a mention of TestDisk. Packed with features and a file recovery system that can easily overshadow that of any other data recovery software, TestDisk has a lot to offer for both novices and experts. Here are some of the TestDisk’s features:

• Allows users to recover/rebuild the boot sector
• Fix or recover deleted partition table besides being able to reliably undelete files from FAT, exFAT, NTFS and ext2 file systems.
• Available on all major platforms such as Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X etc and is in fact quite popular as it can be found on various Linux Live CD’s.

Although being a command line tool, TestDisk may not be suitable for some users for data recovery.

3. Undelete 360:

With the looks of a typical Office application, the Undelete 360 is built on a fast yet efficient algorithm which enables the user to undelete files. Here are some of the features of Undelete 360:

• Works on a variety of devices such as Digital cameras, USBs etc.
• It includes a data-wiping tool, a Hex Viewer along with the ability to preview files before recovery.
• Does a great job in recovering recently deleted files as compared to other free data recovery software
• Also able to recover files of a wide variety of types such as DOC, HTML, AVI, MP3, JPEG, JPG, PNG, GIF, etc.

However, scanning speed needs major improvement and it also lags out its competition in terms of recovering data.

4. PhotoRec:

Definitely one of the best data recovery software out there, PhotoRec is widely acclaimed for its powerful file recovery over a wide variety of devices ranging from digital cameras to hard disks. Here are some of the features of PhotoRec recovery tool:

• Compatible with almost all major platforms such as Microsoft Windows, Linux, Mac OS X etc.
• Comes packed with the ability to recover more than 440 different file formats.
• Features such as the ‘unformat function’ and the ability to add your own custom file types do come in handy.

Although I wouldn’t advise this free data recovery software to beginners as it is completely devoid of a GUI and uses a command line interface which may intimidate some users.

5. Pandora Recovery:

Pandora recovery is one of the most reliable and effective best free data recovery software out there. Pandora recovery tool has a lot to offer to its users. Here are some of the features of this tool:

• Ability to recover deleted files from NTFS and FAT-formatted volumes
• Preview deleted files of certain types (image and text files) without performing recovery
• With surface scan (which allows you to recover data from drives that have been formatted) and the ability to recover archived, hidden, encrypted and compressed files, it packs quite a punch.
• Its interface is very easy to get a hang of and provides an explorer-like view along with color coded and recovery percentage indicators.

However, its file detection system is not that reliable and needs to be improved further. The software could be made portable as well so that it doesn’t consume any space on the hard disk and thereby not consume space that a file which we wish to recover once consumed.

6. MiniTool Partition Recovery:

Standard undelete programs like Recuva, Pandora etc. are perfect for recovering a few deleted files, but what if when you have lost an entire partition? Then you will probably need a specialist application like MiniTool Partition Recovery. Here are some of the great features of this recovery tool specialized in partition recovery:

• An easy wizard-based interface
• Specialized in data recovery on an entire partition
• Point MiniTool Partition Recovery tool at the problematic drive and it will scan for the missing partition
• Generates a recovery report which will let you know what the program has found to help you in data recovery
• Can’t use data recovery on a bootable disc here.

7. Wise Data Recovery:

Wise data recovery tool is one of the fastest undelete tools among the best data recovery software. Besides being faster, it also comes with some nice features. Here is a list of its features:

• Easy and an intuitive interface
• Can recover deleted files from local drives, USB drives, cameras, memory cards, removable media devices etc.
• Faster search filter by selecting inbuilt file extension groups using the file’s type.
• Compatible from Windows XP to Windows 8.

Wise data recovery tool is quick at performing file scans during recovery process but the availability of a deep scan mode would have been better.

8. Puran file Recovery:

Puran file recovery works in 3 main recovery modes. These recovery modes are:

• Default Quick Scan (It simply reads the FAT or NTFS file system for deleted files from the recycle bin etc.)
• Deep Scan (includes scanning all available free space) and,
• Full Scan (checks all space on the device for the best chance of recovery)
• Works from Windows XP to Windows 8

Using the “Find lost files” option turns Puran File Recovery into a tool to recover all files from a lost or damaged partition. Something else you can do is edit the custom scan list which stores file signatures for more accurate recovery of badly damaged data.

9. PC Inspector File recovery

PC Inspector File Recovery works well on both FAT and NTFS drives even if the boot sector has been erased or damaged. Here are some of the features of this recovery tool.

• Simple search dialog can help locate files by name.
• Recovered files can be restored to a local hard disk or network drives.
• Can recover image and video of several types of files in different formats such as ARJ, AVI, BMP, DOC, DXF, XLS, EXE, GIF, HLP, HTML, JPG, LZH, MID, MOV, MP3, PDF, PNG, RTF, TAR, TIF, WAV and ZIP.
• Can scan just specific areas of the disc with the Cluster scanner
• Works perfectly from Windows XP to Windows 7

However, the interface is a little confusing mess of tabs. So, be careful with this tool.

10. Restoration

Restoration data recovery program takes the final position in the list of top 10 best data recovery tools. It is no different and is similar to the other free undelete apps on this list. Even if it is in the tenth position, here are a few things that we liked about this data recovery tool:

• Very simple and easy to use
• No confusing and no cryptic buttons or any complicated file recovery procedures
• It can recover data and files from hard drives, memory cards, USB drives, and other external drives as well.
• Does not need to be installed and can run data recovery from a USB drive.
• Supports Windows Vista, XP, 2000, NT, ME, 98, and 95 and also, successfully tested Windows 7 and Windows 10.
• Sometimes, runs into a problem with Windows 8

Bonus File Recovery Software:

11. Stellar Data Recovery

Living up to its name, Stellar Data Recovery performs a stellar job in recovering your data from your Windows PC and Mac. If you are regretting your decision of deleting recent files, Stellar Data Recovery tool is here to help you in an effective way.

• Risk-free program recovers data from different types of storage devices like memory cards, smartphones, USB drives, hard disks etc.
• Using Stellar Data Recovery program is simple. Just download it, start the scan, and you are able to recover from the past data disasters.

12. DMDE

It is one of the most feature-rich data recovery software I have ever seen. But the unending list of various options actually complicates the recovery process.

• It is portable.
• Supports deep scan. It literally squeezed the flash drive for any sort of deleted data.
• Can save logs to avoid rescan at the later stage.
• Detailed information about the device from which data is to be recovered.
• Doesn’t display original folder names but displays original file names.
• File search option available.
• Multiple filters available.
• Copy sector option to create disk image files.
• Tool to construct RAID.

13. Glary Undelete

The file recovery software provides a clean yet convenient interface for first-time users. It doesn’t have much visual appeal but it can be a good solution to get back your deleted files.

• Quick file scan with Folder and File Types view options.
• Multiple filter options include date, time, file type, file size, etc.
• Preview option available.
• Multiple language options.
• Supports various Windows versions including Windows 10.
• Includes search bar.
• Shows recovery status – Good, Poor, Overwritten, etc – in the scan result
• Does not show original folder names.
• Tries to install companion software from the vendor.

14. Disk Drill

Seriously, if you’re looking for a data recovery software that also looks good then Disk Drill is your shot. But you will have to pay for the visuals by downloading a 15 MB setup file.

• Displays literally all the storage present on your machine, even the unallocated space.
• Displays scanned data in All files, Pictures, Video, Documents, Archives options.
• Allows filtering of scanned files by files and date.
• Includes search bar.
• Can save the recovery session for later use.
• Can recover data in the form of a disk image (ISO).
• Preview option available.
• Deep scan mode available.
• Retains original folder names.
• Restart required after installation.
• Scan time more than average.
• Only 500 MB space can be recovered in the free version. It is the biggest disadvantage.

15. SoftPerfect File Recovery

This data recovery software is ideal for those users who don’t want the hassles of installing a software. It’s tiny solution which offers a minimalistic interface.

• Set up size is just 0.5MB.
• Easy to use.
• Includes search bar.
• Can’t recover corrupted or overwritten files.
• Preview not available.
• Multiple languages available.
• Doesn’t show the health of the files to be recovered.
• Doesn’t allow restoration of recovered files on the same disk. Better run it from a flash drive.

Editor’s pick: 

I would personally recommend Piriform’s Recuva to all our readers, hands down. With superior file recovery, an advanced deep scan mode, a secure overwrite feature that uses industry & military standard deletion techniques and the ability to recover files from damaged or newly formatted files, Recuva is undeniably one of the best free data recovery tools out there. Its portability (the ability to run without installation) is one feature that sets it apart from others.

The User Interface wouldn’t let you down either with a file-recovery wizard and an application manual mode available to your disposal which provides color coding (indicating the probability of the recovery of a file) along with the ability to preview files before undeleting them. Recuva is definitely a notch above all others and undoubtedly the most complete and reliable free data recovery software available today.

Have some other data recovery software in mind? Give us your suggestions in the comments below.