Is Your Data Safe?
As we increase our dependence on technology, concerns about data security and privacy continue to rise. Companies (and individuals) must properly dispose of sensitive information in order to prevent any potential breaches. Your devices contain a wealth of confidential data including proprietary information, patient records, contact information, legal records, social security numbers, and financial information.
There have been many high-profile data breaches in 2023 alone. Proper protection of your data can prevent damage to your reputation, your customers, and your company.
Types of Data Destruction
Simply deleting a file is not enough to permanently erase information. Data destruction is the process of destroying data from hard drives, servers, memory drives, tapes, and other electronic devices so that the information is inaccessible and unreadable.
- Overwriting/Erasing
This method involves overwriting data with a pattern (like 1’s and 0’s) so that the original data is completely illegible. This makes it nearly impossible to recover, unless using an electron microscope! Multiple passes of overwriting and then verification can be done to ensure the erasure is successful.
- Degaussing
Degaussing is the process of using a powerful magnet to erase the organized magnetic charges that represent stored data. A degaussing device will render the data jumbled and unrecoverable. However, this only works for magnetic media and will not have the intended effect on solid-state drives or optical discs.
- Physical Destruction
Physically destroying devices guarantees secure data destruction, making it a requirement for health or government related companies. Dismantling, shredding, and incineration are all methods of irreversible and complete data destruction.
What is a Certificate of Data Destruction?
A certificate of data destruction is issued by your service provider to prove that the data from your devices has been securely and irreversibly destroyed. In addition to a certificate, METech Recycling will provide tracking information through the client portal to show exactly which stage your assets are at in our process.
Why is R2v3 Data Sanitization Important?
All METech Recycling facilities are R2v3 compliant, meaning that we adhere to strict standards of data sanitization to ensure that your devices are wiped of sensitive information (whether they are recycled or resold). This includes detailed records of the sanitization process, testing, and a secure facility with alarms and CCTV systems. You want to make sure that the company providing your data destruction services is following the R2v3 requirements to add an extra layer of protection for your sensitive data.
Is Reselling IT Equipment Safe?
Choosing a reputable data destruction and resale company is the most important factor in deciding whether or not to resell your assets. As long as your provider is following R2v3 standards, the risk of a data breach from your retired assets is very low.
The resale of IT equipment can be a great way for companies to help recoup costs when upgrading their devices. Even donating laptops or other equipment to charity and using it as a tax write off can be cost effective. Another reason to resell or donate is to get the most use out of these items as possible, preventing these materials from entering the waste stream and reducing your company’s carbon footprint.
Data Destruction Services at METech Recycling
METech Recycling offers single, 3 or 7-pass software data destruction services depending on your security needs. All data-containing devices are sanitized to National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) SP800-88 and Department of Defense (DoD) 5220.22-M data erasure standards and are physically tracked from receipt to final disposition.
Data-containing devices that fail to boot, mount, detect, or are otherwise inaccessible are physically destroyed using our in-house shredding capabilities to ensure data destruction. A Certificate of Data Destruction is provided for all software data eradication and/or physical destruction jobs. This entire process also ensures compliance with both FACTA and HIPAA regulations.
Get in touch with our team by sending us a message or give us a call at 1-866-479-4920 to discuss how METech Recycling can tailor a plan to your company’s ITAD and data destruction needs.