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I have several SD cards and USB flash drives that are often laying around my work space. Do I have to be careful to keep magnets away from them? (This paranoia is showing my age - I remember needing to make sure magnets never got near my precious 3.5 inch floppies...)

David Oneill
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  • Related: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Degaussing#Degaussing_magnetic_data_storage_media – iglvzx Mar 01 '12 at 18:33
  • possible duplicate of [Can Screwdrivers With Magnetic Tips Cause Damage To Electronics?](http://superuser.com/questions/323036/can-screwdrivers-with-magnetic-tips-cause-damage-to-electronics) – Diogo Mar 01 '12 at 18:38
  • @DiogoRocha The thing about that question is that it is extremely broad and the top answer is anecdotal. I do not think they are duplicates. – iglvzx Mar 01 '12 at 18:41
  • possible duplicate of http://superuser.com/questions/338641/is-it-possible-to-wipe-ssd-with-strong-magnetic-force – BlueRaja - Danny Pflughoeft Mar 01 '12 at 19:01

1 Answers1

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No, unless the magnet is REALLY strong (see below quote). There is not enough magnetic material in them.

"A magnet powerful enough to disturb the electrons in flash would be powerful enough to suck the iron out of your blood cells"

If the above quote is the case you should not be working where you do.

It is also a big myth that normal magnets can ruin harddrives.

The same goes for hard drives. The only magnets powerful enough to scrub data from a drive platter are laboratory degaussers or those used by government agencies to wipe bits off media.

But those floppies, don't let them near your magnets.

Source: Busting the Biggest PC Myths | PCWorld

iglvzx
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sealz
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    Wouldn't the force exerted on the electrons be proportional to the speed at which you move the thumb drive through the magnetic field? – Simon Richter Mar 01 '12 at 23:24
  • @SimonRichter Actually, it's inversely proportional to the speed you pass over it. Source: many years wiping mag media with electro magnet. Also, my electro magnet will erase a HDD no prob. In fact, the handheld electro mag will make a HDD unable to ever work again if you leave it over the drive too long. – krowe Sep 07 '14 at 04:36
  • "You should not be working where you do." Thank you for that... – Mentalist May 24 '21 at 01:11