Risk Mitigation for Data Asset Destruction

There are known risks to storing data in digital formats.  If your firewall isn’t robust, your password protections are weak, you’ve decided to forego encryption, and so on, you place yourself at risk of data breach, identity theft, and damage to your customers and your company.

What you might not realize is all the risks inherent to data asset destruction.  You may think that erasing hard drives or devices and tossing them in the recycle bin will do the trick, or that you can hire just any data destruction service to manage these tasks for you.  Unfortunately, choosing poorly when it comes to data asset disposal can be just as harmful as failing to protect stored data.  How can you mitigate the risks associated with data asset destruction?

On-Site Security

Just as you secure data while it remains useful, you must also keep devices secure until the old data on them is destroyed, or the devices themselves are shredded and recycled.  You don’t want employees to gain access to data they would otherwise be prohibited from seeing, and you definitely don’t want exposed devices left susceptible to theft from external threats (like a break-in).

When you partner with a reliable IT asset disposition (ITAD) service provider, you’ll receive locking bins for use in-office.  When devices are slated for destruction, they can be placed in these bins, where they will remain safe until pickup for destruction as scheduled.  This is a lot better than letting equipment containing sensitive data languish in a locked closet or even out in the open until you get around to dealing with it.

Secure Chain of Custody

You should beware an “out of sight, out of mind” attitude when it comes to confidential data and the disposal of the devices that house it.  Are you willing to simply trust a company that says it will destroy your devices?  What if they take your money and dump the devices wholesale, resulting in stolen devices and penalties for breaking both environmental and privacy laws?

This won’t happen when you partner with a company that offers chain of custody tracking, from the moment your hard drives are picked up until they are wiped and resold or shredded and recycled.  You want a company that not only offers proof of disposal with certificates of destruction and recycling, but one that provides complete transparency with a 24/7 portal for tracking the status of your devices.

Certifications

Not all ITAD companies are equal, and you need to know that the service you choose goes above and beyond to comply with privacy and environmental laws and keep your company and your data safe during and after destruction of devices.  You need a certified ITAD service provider, particularly with industry watchdogs like the e-Stewards and R2.

When you want to minimize risks associated with data asset destruction for your Sioux Falls, SD business, SEAM is the reliable, certified service provider you’re looking for.  Call 605-274-SEAM (7326) today to learn more.