Digital Mold: What’s Growing in Your Files?
Your hard drive isn’t growing mushrooms — but it might as well be. Old projects, corrupt files, abandoned backups, mystery folders named “New Folder (2)”... digital mold takes many forms. And like real mold, it thrives in darkness and disuse.
How It Spreads
- Duplicated files: Multiple versions of the same file scattered across cloud and local drives.
- Unknown formats: Legacy files from apps you no longer use, unreadable but still taking up space.
- Auto-generated junk: Thumbnails, cache folders, crash dumps — hidden, but multiplying.
- Abandoned systems: Forgotten Notion pages, Evernote dumps, old iCloud backups.
Remediation Protocol
- Scan for duplicates: Use a duplicate file finder to safely identify and remove clones.
- Sort by last modified: Triage folders that haven’t changed in years — archive or delete.
- Surface the invisible: Enable hidden file view to clean out ghost directories and logs.
- Back up with intent: Migrate only the essential to a physical SSD or encrypted USB stick.
As an Amazon Associate, Low Entropy Detective earns from qualifying purchases.