If you want to delete a file permanently without sending it to the Recycle Bin, add the 'Permanently Delete' item to the Context Menu.

The file itself is still at large -- and could be rediscovered with a bit of technical know-how. Here's how to completely erase all traces of that time when you rolled with LulzSec.

Delete files securely and completely in Windows 11 using SDelete Download SDelete for free from the Microsoft Sysinternals webpage.

Instead, try the free Windows program Eraser, which uses Department of Defense-level data destruction algorithms to get rid of files permanently. For Macs, there's Clean My MacX Shredder, $40.

Read this article to learn how to remove files from Dropbox without deleting them from your computer hard drive. Use the Smart Sync option!

Deleting files in Windows 10 does not really delete the file. Security best practice requires deleted files to be completely overwritten more than once.

Windows won't let you delete, move, or rename a file if a program is using it. Frustratingly, it also won't tell you which program is using the file so that you can solve the problem.