Maxell 4gb USB flash drive not working

The PC Wanderer

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Jun 18, 2010
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18,510
Hi

The flash drive was purchased 3 months ago and now the devise is no longer showing any connectivity at all. There is no light illuminating on the device and it's not registering in Explorer or Device Manager in Windows XP and other XP systems with no luck. The device worked fine the day before this fault occurred and every time I disconnected the devise, I always used the ‘Safely Remove Hardware’ in the Systems Tray. Will the device be reparable and the data retrievable at all? This devise is still under warranty, so I may try to get a replacement device, but they might return it to Maxell for fault diagnostics. If they do the latter, there is some sensitive data that needs to be erased and wonder how this could be done, before handing the device over. I wonder if using a magnet would wipe the dater and what strength it would need to be. Any help would be gratefully received!

 
If the device is not working, it's hard to confirm that the files have been deleted by whatever method you choose. I had a similar issue with a defective 4GB flash drive containing banking information. Even though I could have obtained a free replacement, I chose not to turn it in, for the same concerns you have. Instead, I physically destroyed the USB flash drive by using a hammer. I trust a "BFH" over magnets!