Everything You Need to Know about Data Destruction
Everything You Need to Know about Data Destruction
When it comes to disposing of outdated electronics and digital devices, it’s not enough to throw them away. An improperly-discarded hard drive or tape can cost your company untold thousands of dollars in breach notification costs and legal fees. Here’s everything you need to know about data destruction:
Used and Resold Digital Devices Contain Sensitive Data
Think twice before emptying out a closet filled with old tapes, hard drives, laptops and selling everything on eBay. A recent study released by the National Association for Information Destruction (NAID) found that 40 percent of used electronic devices sold on the secondhand market contained personally identifiable information (PII). Usernames, passwords, credit card data, tax details, and contact information was found on used hard drives, mobile phones and tablets analyzed in the study. Most importantly, the recovery process used to identify data on more than 250 devices required no advanced forensic training.
The few bucks to be made by reselling your old devices isn’t worth having your data compromised. Instead, invest in a secure data destruction solution.
Erasing and Deleting Data Isn’t Enough
Don’t dump an erased hard drive in the trash. With readily-available software, a thief can recover sensitive data from your device. Shredding is the only way to completely remove data from old media.
A hard drive shredding service uses specialized shredders to pulverize hard drives and tapes into tiny pieces, rendering the data unreadable. After your media is destroyed, you’re given a Certificate of Destruction.
NAID AAA Certified Shredding Is the Way to Go
Make sure your data destruction partner is NAID AAA Certified. The National Association for Information Destruction (NAID) is the non-profit, standard-setting body for the information destruction industry. NAID AAA Certified data destruction companies must pass ongoing audits by third-party security professionals so you know your media is destroyed within a strict chain of custody and according to the highest industry standards.
Responsible Data Destruction Includes Recycling
Every year, millions of tons of electronic waste is illegally dumped, damaging our environment. A final disposition solution for hard drives, tapes and electronic devices should include environmentally-responsible recycling. With a responsible data destruction provider, after your digital devices are shredded, an authorized recycling partner separates the metals and other shredded materials and recycles them according to state and federal environmental standards.
A trusted, NAID AAA Certified data destruction partner will help you destroy outdated electronic devices securely and in an environmentally-friendly manner.
Pacific Records Management provides hard drive and media shredding services for businesses throughout Fresno, Stockton, Sacramento, Modesto, and Napa and Solano Counties. For more information, please call us at 800-685-9034 or complete the form on this page.