The Mac OS X operating system and the applications you use occasionally have need to make copies of the data you’re working with, and will later delete that data as necessary. Recognizing this as a potential security risk, SuperScrubber developer Jiiva has developed AutoScrubber, which they bill as a “personal security assistant.”
AutoScrubber keeps track of all the files that are created and deleted on your Mac — even the ones that you can’t see — and securely erases all the fragments and copies of the files as they’re made. When you choose to erase the original file, AutoScrubber will get rid of the rest.
So, for example, when you go to print a file, the operating system makes a copy of the file then deletes it when your Mac is finished printing. AutoScrubber makes sure that copy is securely erased. In-progress or backup copies produced by applications like word processors are similarly deleted.
A demo version called DeleteWatch is available for download from the Web site — it’ll show you how AutoScrubber works, though no file deletion actually takes place. AutoScrubber costs US$59.99 and requires Mac OS X v10.2 “Jaguar” or later.