SQLITE_SECURE_DELETE

This compile-time option changes the default setting of the secure_delete pragma. When this option is not used, secure_delete defaults to off. When this option is present, secure_delete defaults to on.

The secure_delete setting causes deleted content to be overwritten with zeros. There is a small performance penalty for this since additional I/O must occur. On the other hand, secure_delete can prevent sensitive information from lingering in unused parts of the database file after it has allegedly been deleted. See the documentation on the secure_delete pragma for additional information.