Methods, systems, and computer program products are provided for performing a secure delete operation in a wide area network (WAN) including a cache site and a home site. A method includes identifying a file for deletion at the cache site, determining whether the file has a copy stored at the home site, detecting a location of the copy at the home site prior to a disconnection event of the cache site from the home site, deleting the file from the cache site during the disconnection event, and in response to the secure deletion of the file not being complete during the disconnection event, indicating on a table a remote inode number assigned to the copy associated with the file at the home site, a name under which the copy is saved, and a list of data chunk tuples specifying selected data of the copy to undergo secure deletion.