News in the Channel – February 2023

DATA DESTRUCTION

areas: off-site, on-site and recycling. “With off-site, there is a secure collection from offices of all redundant assets, which are brought back to the facility and securely wiped with industry standard software and the constituent parts broken down and recycled. All data holding components, HDD and the like should be shredded to secure level required. “On-site is for the more security conscious facilities, where data can’t leave the facility. This is usually for data holding component parts HDD/Media/SD card/USB/CD/FD and the like, being shredded to the secure level size. “With wipe and recycle, again facilities may realise some rebate on hardware, therefore wiping and recycling hardware can secure the data but render the hardware operable for charity, school or resale.” But as Richard notes, it must be ensured that shredding is done correctly and down to secure sizes, otherwise there is the risk it could be pieced back together. “The main issue is it does not remove any of the data stored, instead, it makes it a more complex jigsaw,” adds Gavin Griffiths, managing director of Insurgo Media Services Ltd. “We also have issues concerning the CM Chip which is around 1mm in length and width and a few microns thick that is contained in all modern tape formats. The CM chip holds varying amounts of data depending on the generation and can also be written to by companies that wish to add more information to the chip.”

recorded data is removed and renders the tape unusable, the internal CM chip still needs addressing, especially in the more modern tapes, as degaussing does not impact the chip.

Gavin Griffiths managing director Insurgo Media Services

There’s no coming back from 800 degrees and it’s a good way of achieving nothingness. But unfortunately, you’ve got environmental “

“Degaussing also needs to be paired with another disposal method either landfill or incineration. Incineration is total as there is no coming back from 800 degrees, and it’s a good way of achieving nothingness,” says Gavin. “But unfortunately, you’ve got environmental impacts that come with it, and you can’t dispose of a tape wholly in waste to energy plants. “We also have information from the NSCS website talking about cold spots aspect in some plant designs and that data bearing surfaces can be inadvertently protected from heat. They advise companies to make sure any incineration facilities used are aware of this problem and ask how they can prevent a failure of this nature before using them to dispose of data bearing assets. “I guess there is an element of risk in every stage of data disposal aspects, and if a failure point were to happen in each, companies could be exposed.”

impacts that come with it.

”

Another method is degaussing. This is where data stored on computer and laptop hard drives, floppy disks and magnetic tape, is exposed to strong magnetic fields that randomly changing the alignment of magnetic domains on the medium, meaning the data is unrecoverable. “Degaussing is probably the best data destruction method when done correctly,” says Gavin. “It should have some external check afterward to ensure its coercivity is the level required and data removed. If the

Gavin adds that he believes some companies will continue to shred and incinerate their data. “Some people in

environmental positions are not doing their duty to the corporate they represent because some do not recognise that they are burning harmful toxin into the environment.” Opportunities for resellers Insurgo has invented and patented a forensically proven method called KIT ® that

insurgo.co.uk

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