Why NAID-Certified Hard Drive Destruction is the Only Way to Ditch Old Computers

Information technology keeps evolving and getting lighter, faster, and more powerful. Unfortunately, in the same time with technology advances, the infractions related with IT are on the rise too.

Computers and electronic devices are a preferred target for thieves looking to steal personal or corporate information and to compromise privacy. For this reason, it is important for businesses to take the appropriate steps in order to protect their computers, IT systems and data from such malevolent attempts. That goes for computers that are ready to be disposed of.

Getting Rid of Old Technology, the Righteous Way

What can a business do with their old PCs, hard drives, flash drives and other electronic media that are outdated? Companies use software to delete data from their hard drives, but these practice still leave them at risk of a security breach.

It is a mistake to think that data on hard drives can be erased by conventional means. Reformatting a hard drive still leaves the possibility that the information once stored on the hard drive is restored, even when done with professional computer network security and support. Besides the potential security risks, companies also face fines for improper disposal of hard drives.

When hard drive destruction is not handled in a proper way, it can lead to permanently damaged reputation and to millions of dollars in damages. Regardless of whether a company activates in an industry that is subject to stringent regulatory requirements and privacy laws, your no organization can afford to risk confidential and sensitive business information falling into the wrong hands.

The best approach is to only seek hard drive destruction services by company that's certified by the National Association for Information Destruction (NAID). The process involves removing the hard drive and its physical destruction. NAID certified companies, like Confidential Security Corporation are specialized in secure paper shredding and computer hard drive destruction. Certified and secure hard drive destruction is the only mean that ensure 100 percent permanent data destruction from hard drives.

Setting the Standard for Hard Drive Destruction & Secure Document Disposal

NAID sets the industry standards for information destruction and they offer the NAID certification, which is a voluntary program for companies that provide services of secure information destruction.

The certification program, which was developed by professionals in information security, it is recognized by thousands of governmental and private organizations worldwide. In order to pass the certification, the NAID certification auditors verify that the proper protocols are in place in order to ensure that the security of the confidential material is preserved throughout all stages of the destruction process.

Practice & Benefits of NAID-Certified Hard Drive Destruction

The hard drive are psychically destroyed by the specialized companies using a hard drive hammer or through a certified shredding process. The NAID certified companies use best practices for hard drive destruction and disposal, in compliance with current HIPAA, PHI, PCI, GLBA, FACTA, NIST, NSA and other industry standards and requirements.

It is important to have a NAID approved company for hard drive destruction in order to ensure that the process is handled and documented properly. Physical hard drive destruction is the only safe mean to eliminate the various risks related to personal and business information access on sensitive data such as:

• Medical information
• Social Security Information
• Credit Card Data
• Bank account information
• Trade information
• Trade secrets
• Business strategies
• Customer information
• Classified and confidential data
• Government and military records.

NAID certified hard drive destruction companies can also provide onsite destruction services by using state of the art mobile hard drive shredders.