Most individuals and organizations rely on storage devices like hard disks to keep their most important information accessible. At some point, chances are these drives will need to be updated or discarded. So, what happens to the sensitive data they contain? Can you just simply erase it?
For many companies, making sure that data is completely destroyed (and cannot be accessed by any means) is essential. In this article, we will explain everything you should know about the hard drive destroying process – including how the use of shredders can help keep your data from falling into the wrong hands.
What is a Hard Drive Shredder?
A hard drive shredder is a heavy-duty machine that is designed to physically destroy HDDs by cutting them into very small pieces. As a result of this process, any sensitive data previously stored in it is made unreadable and irretrievable.
Industrial shredders use sharp blades or cutting elements to slice each drive into numerous tiny fragments. So tiny, in fact, that they would be impossible to reconstruct. This process deals with both the casing and the interior components of hard drives.
The Hard Drive Shredding Process
Shredders use a combination of cutting, slicing, and pulverizing to destroy the drives and make any sensitive information saved in them impossible to recover. Here’s a small overview of how these machines work:
- First, the HDDs you want to destroy are removed from their casings to expose all the internal components. This helps the shredder reach the hard drive platters, where the information is stored.
- Then, the HDDs are fed into the machine (which can be done manually or automatically). Many shredders are designed to work on many disks at once.
- Once inside the shredder, the data media is cut by sharp blades or rotating discs with cutting edges, which are specifically engineered to slide through the components of hard drives.
- Lastly, the resulting fragments are collected in a container and properly disposed of or sent for recycling.
Shredding vs Degaussing vs Disintegrating Hard Drives
If you have been exploring the various methods for making data unrecoverable, you have probably come across a series of machines that promise to do the job. We’re talking, specifically, about degaussers and disintegrators.
Degaussers expose the hard drive to a strong magnetic field. So strong that it disrupts the patterns on the drive’s platters and effectively erases all the data. Degaussing can be a highly efficient method for HDDs (which store information using magnetic fields), but they will not work on other kinds of media, like SSDs or newer drives like HAMR and MAMR.
Another option is using disintegrators to get the drives properly destroyed. Disintegrators are machines that subject the hard drives to powerful mechanical forces that literally pulverize them into particles or dust. As you can picture, this method is quite effective for completely destroying media and can ensure that no readable information remains.
Now, how do degaussers and disintegrators compare to shredders? Before we can answer this question, you need to consider which hard drives you need to destroy. As we mentioned above, degaussers will only work on magnetic media – so it would be okay (in some circumstances, it depends on regulatory compliance requirements, too) for HDDs, tapes, and other magnetic media.
The choice between disintegrators and shredders depends more on the situation. If your organization needs to comply with specific data destruction regulations or industry standards, shredding is a widely accepted and recognized method for data destruction. Shredding is also suitable for a wide range of hard drive types, including both traditional spinning hard drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SSDs). The fragment size will be different, though. If your organization has a specific requirement for the size of the shredded fragments resulting from the process (for example, it needs to ensure very small or uniform particles), a shredder can provide better control compared to a disintegrator.
The bottom line is this: Shredders can handle a large volume of hard drives efficiently. So, they are ideal if your organization needs to process a significant number of hard drives within a specific time frame. Plus, they are more commonly available!
The Benefits of Hard Drive Shredding for Data Destruction
Using shredders to dispose of a hard drive offers several benefits. So, let’s go through each in some detail and compare this method of destroying data media with other alternatives like disintegration and degaussing.
Data Security
One of the most important advantages of using a shredder for the hard drive destruction process is its ability to turn them into such small fragments that it becomes impossible to recover any sensitive information from them. This possibility mitigates the risk of data breaches and identity theft, and unauthorized access to confidential data. Hard drives often contain personal information, like social security numbers, medical data, or financial records. By shredding the drives, you ensure nobody can retrieve and use them.
Compliance With Data Protection Regulations
Many organizations need to comply with industry-specific data protection and privacy regulations. For example, laws like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) instruct companies to guarantee the secure and permanent destruction of personal and sensitive data. By shredding your hard drives, you can be sure you’re using a reliable and auditable method to meet these regulatory requirements.
Intellectual Property Protection
Shredding your hard drives can also help you protect valuable intellectual property and trade secrets, as it prevents unauthorized access or retrieval of this sensitive business information. This is especially important for industries that heavily rely on proprietary data, research, or development – for which shredders offer an ideal solution.
Data Leakage Prevention
When you shred a drive, be it on-site or through certified data destruction services, your organizations can maintain control over the entire data destruction process. This power to observe the entire life cycle of the data minimizes the risk of leakages during transportation or handling, which can, unfortunately, happen when you rely on other methods like off-site data destruction or reformatting.
Environmental Responsibility
Electronic waste, or e-waste, is an important issue that companies often overlook. However, it’s vital to ensure any equipment you dispose of doesn’t let hazardous substances (like heavy metals and toxic chemicals) reach the soil and water – contaminating ecosystems and posing risks to our health. The good news is: Shredding a hard drive makes disposing of and recycling its parts easier. The fragments can, for example, be used to retrieve valuable materials or be disposed of in accordance with environmental regulations.
Demonstrable Data Destruction
By using hard drive shredding as a means of destroying information, you can obtain certificates of destruction or other documentation from professional shredding services as evidence that data has been securely destroyed. This, in turn, can help you demonstrate compliance with legal and regulatory obligations.
Using a Hard Drive Destruction Company
If you want to protect your company’s sensitive information, one of the best things you can do is leverage hard drive shredding as a data destruction method. This data security process will help you minimize the risk of data breaches or unauthorized access and meet legal and regulatory requirements.
There are many companies that specialize in secure data and hard drive destruction services. The advantage of accessing their services or products is that you will instantly connect with a pool of expertise, knowledge, and specialized equipment that will help you destroy your data beyond recovery.
At Phiston Technologies, we have engineered a set of products that ensure complete media destruction. Our innovative machines combine the best security features with a solid foundation in compliance. This is why our shredders have garnered a growing list of prestigious institutions in both the public and the private sectors.
If you want to learn more about our services and products, don’t hesitate to contact us. We’ll be happy to help you.
