Best Ways to Destroy A Hard Drive

As long as the hardware still exists, the sensitive data on it is at risk for misuse. Failing to include old computer hard drives, retired servers, unused flash drives, external hard drives, and outdated mobile devices in your information security strategies increases the risk of a security breach, which could lead to major financial, reputation, and compliance ramifications.

Unfortunately, not all companies consider hard drive and other technology destruction in their security plans. According to our 2020 Data Protection Report, nearly half of small business owners don’t have a policy for disposing of confidential information on end-of-life electronic devices. Physical destruction of hard drive, SSD and magnetic media is the key to rendering it unreadable and preventing any overwriting.

Wiping, degaussing, or reformatting a hard drive or other electronic device doesn’t completely remove data from the device, and forensic software programs can recover the information. A quick Internet search reveals countless instructional blogs and videos that walk through the data recovery process. Although these are aimed at people who accidentally wipe or reformat their machines, the same strategies can be used by criminals to access private and confidential data from discarded equipment. You should always destroy hard drives or other electronic devices before recycling because there is no way to ensure that equipment sent for recycling will not be accessed by information thieves.

A common misperception around hard drive destruction is that magnets placed on or near the technology will destroy the stored data. While this may have worked at one time, today’s technology is more advanced. Even if a magnet was able to corrupt the data, it may be possible to repair the information.

If your company is unsure how to properly destroy hard drives and other equipment, you may choose to stockpile these items in a locked cabinet or storage area. However, this introduces risks as well. Even if the technology is secured, sensitive information remains on the equipment and therefore can still be stolen. 

Physically destroying hard drives and other electronic media is the only 100% secure way to permanently remove data from the technology. Although you could use a DIY approach and take a hammer to the equipment, this is not reliable or prudent and can pose worker safety risks. A better choice is to have it physically destroyed by a professional hard drive destruction service like Shred-it. Not only will we shear or crush the device to obliterate it, we guarantee a secure chain of custody from the moment we pick it up until it’s demolished. We also offer regularly scheduled pickups, on-demand service, and drop-off options. Additionally, we provide an itemized Certificate of Destruction (or Proof of Service) that includes the device’s manufacturer name and serial number. Once the equipment is unusable, we recycle the hard drive with local partners to reduce the volume of material heading to landfills.

Hard drive destruction is an important and often overlooked aspect of information security. Learn more about how Shred-it can help you and your company properly dispose of old technology.

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