Ensure Secure HDD Disposal: Here’s a Checklist

Hard Disk Drives (HDDs) are disposed of when they reach end-of-life, or are no longer required. Device upgrades, project completion, employee promotion or termination could be reasons due to which the HDDs have to be disposed. Unless HDDs are disposed of securely, the chances of data stored on them getting retrieved and then leaked are much higher. This data may have Personally Identifiable Information (PII), financial data, Protected Health Information (PHI) and similar sensitive information. Breach of this data can lead to identity theft, extortion attempts, and loss of intellectual property. In addition, multiple global data protection regulatory authorities mandate data disposal and impose high penalties and lawsuits in case of negligence.

The aftermath of a data breach negatively impacts the reputation of the business, its operations, and relationships with stakeholders and customers. Only secure HDD disposal ensures that business-critical data gets erased permanently instead of getting compromised.  

Hard disk drive disposal can be carried out by different media disposal methods, such as data erasure, aka overwriting, degaussing, shredding, disintegrating, etc. However, businesses need to carefully choose the method of data destruction, taking into consideration data sensitivity, storage technology, circularity objectives, ESG goals, and finally, budgets.

Hence, one HDD disposal method may not be suitable for all organizations, but what is common to all is maintaining data security while performing HDD disposal and ensuring that no traces of data are left behind.

To ensure your data is protected and the HDD is disposed of securely, the following checklist can come in handy:

• Is your organization storing data on hard drives on the basis of data classification?
  
  It is essential to classify data as per its sensitivity (confidential, internal, public) and select the appropriate storage media accordingly. For example, if the HDD stores business-critical data, financial information, PHI, PII, credit card information, or information related to employees, then the drive can be easily wiped using secure erasure software like BitRaser Drive Eraser, which deploys the NIST-Clear method to overwrite information beyond recovery.   
• Is there a repository of the HDDs, including mechanical drives, hybrid drives, etc.?
  
  The organization should maintain an updated repository of hard disk drives, SSDs, USBs, etc., used for storage and make a wise decision to choose the right data destruction method basis the storage technology. At this point in time, it is important to note that SSDs cannot be degaussed; however, they can easily be erased using data erasure software.
• Does the technique deployed for HDD disposal harm the environment in any way?
  
  All the physical media sanitization methods, such as degaussing, incineration, disintegrating, shredding, etc., are harmful to the environment, and they render the storage media useless. Only in the cases where the storage media has bad sectors or the drive is inaccessible, is it recommended to physically destroy the media using processes like shredding or degaussing as per NSA guidelines.
• Is the hard disk drive disposal performed using a tested and certified data-wiping tool?
  
  Using a tested and certified data-wiping tool gives assurance to the organization of the data erasure efficacy and helps build trust among customers and stakeholders. Certification and test reports from reputable standardization bodies, such as NIST, validate the manufacturer’s claims about the tool’s sanitization performance. BitRaser Drive Eraser is an NIST-tested and certified data erasure tool that wipes HDDs, SSDs, servers, laptops, PCs, etc.
• Is the tool capable of erasing data from hidden disk zones?
  
  Many user-inaccessible areas, such as Host Protected Area (HPA), Disk Configuration Overlay (DCO), Accessible Max Address (AMA), or Disk Firmware Area (DFA), reside on storage media, including HDDs. It is important that the media sanitization method is able to remove data from these hidden disk zones present on the HDDs.
• Is the resale, reuse, or donation of the hard disk drives a purpose of the organization?
  
  If the organization aims to reuse, resell, or donate the HDDs, then they must go for a hard disk drive disposal method that doesn’t physically destroy the drives. Opting for a logical hard drive sanitization method like data erasure will erase the data stored on the drive and enable these drives to be repurposed and reused.
• Does the HDD disposal method wipe data from the storage media directly, or do the HDDs need to be removed?
  
  While some HDD sanitization methods require hard drives to be dismantled from the system, other sanitization methods, like data erasure, can directly wipe the storage media with the drives still installed in them. This is helpful in the case of an embedded storage media.
• Is there a way to document the proof of HDD data destruction that will help in audits?
  
  Every organization governed by data protection regulation authorities requires verifiable documented evidence of having permanently removed data from the storage media. Software tools like BitRaser Drive Eraser generate automatic, detailed erasure reports along with a tamper-proof certificate of erasure, which serve as proof during compliance audits.
• Is there a process to verify that all the data has been removed from the hard drive?
  
  There is no way to verify the efficacy of HDD sanitization if a physical data destruction method has been applied. However, if a data erasure tool has been used to sanitize HDDs, then a verifier like BitRaser Drive Verifier can verify if any data traces are left behind on the drive post-erasure.

Conclusion

For organizations, their data, which most often contains sensitive and diverse information, holds the utmost importance. If an organization processes information that comprises PHI, PII, credit card data, financial details, etc., then the negligence in securing this data can result in criminal actions and penalties by laws that regulate finance, health, and insurance sectors, along with data protection laws at the federal and state levels. Hence, the more diverse the data is, the more damage it can cause to the business if not securely erased in time.  

Using a certified software-based data erasure tool, this business-critical information can be removed permanently before it can be compromised. In situations where physical data destruction takes precedence due to data security concerns, like in the cases of drives containing national security data, a combination of data erasure and physical data destruction methods should be used. In short, to secure data, prevent data breaches, and attain compliance with data protection laws and regulations, whether the drive is to be physically destroyed or not, it should be erased securely prior to the HDD disposal stage.