The Data Destruction Process - Hard Drives

The data destruction process involves destroying confidential information or data on digital media such as hard drives, SSDs and backup tapes.  There are three main data destruction techniques which include wiping, degaussing and physically shredding digital media.  The appropriate manner, or technique, in which data is destroyed depends on the type of media to be destroyed as well as the company’s security protocols and guideline requirements.

Step #1: Data Destruction Should be at Your Location

We bring our hard drive destruction truck to your office, data center or recycling storage area.  Our on-site destruction service allows you to witness and verify that drives have truly been destroyed.

Step #2: Collect and Scan Drives

We collect drives pulled from servers, storage arrays and computers into a single secured area.  Once collected, drives are scanned and inventoried for a detailed Certificate of Destruction report.

Step #3 Shred Drives

Hard drives are then shredded into random 1.5″ pieces at a rate of over 500 PC drives per hour.  Most computer recycling companies only the the capability to drill, hole punch or bend the hard drives rather than fully shred.   Shredding Video 

Step #4: Certificate of Destruction


Our Certificate of Destruction details quantity  and type of digital destroyed, serial number, location,  and company personnel that witness the process.

Physical destruction is an effective form for destroying data on all forms of digital media.  Deguassing is a effective technique for magnetic media such as hard drives and backup tape, but will not work on flash memory such as SSDs or cell phones.  We have focused this article on physically destroying digital media through shredding.

Data Destruction Process Summary

In summary, a secure data destruction process should follow the four steps above.  The key point here is that your data destruction vendor has allowed you to witness and verify that your hard drives truly been destroyed.  The unbroken chain-of-custody should give your company confidence that confidential information will not be compromised.