I have a MAC desktop about 4 years old and would like to replace. What is the best way to back up my information? What is the easiest and securist? What do I do after that to eliminate any trace of me on the computer before I chose to sell it? Thanks!

Best way is to take the hard drive out, drill holes through the disks, smash it with a hammer then burn it. (thats the only sure fire, guaranteed way nobody will ever get anything from it, including the government)


Otherwise data can be likely recovered from it. By someone that knows how with the right software which isn't hard to find.

There are many freeware options to back up your data or complete drive. Here's one: SuperDuper!

Then you can use what I use to wipe hard drives:

Darik's Boot and Nuke
Darik's Boot And Nuke | Hard Drive Disk Wipe and Data Clearing
Here's is a youtube video that shows you how: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZH1STQNAhY

DBAN is an excellent and secure way to erase a drive. It uses DoD levels of secure erasing in order to securely delete data, however the NSA standards do recommend destruction of media. As far as backing up data goes, it is a good idea to back up program specific data and user data, the rest is useless on adding to a new system. These settings/files are generally stored in your home directory. Any applications will have to be reinstalled and their data transferred separately. Generally copying the home directory to an external disk will serve as an appropriate backup.