Degaussers for Complete Data Destruction

Make sure all the NAND chips are broken for destruction or use an erasure software that has been validated by Ontrack.

Data deletion, or data sanitisation, allows you to erase data that is no longer needed using methods that make it impossible to recreate the data. This is different from, for example, formatting a hard drive. It's also not the same as pressing "delete" to free up space or moving files to the trash. After these actions, data can be recovered using many different methods. Erasing data safely means that the areas on storage devices that contain unwanted data are overwritten or that the entire hard drive is overwritten. Overwriting is a process undertaken as part of secure erasure programs.

The main objective of secure data destruction is to make it impossible to recover data from a data storage device that is no longer in use by an individual or organization. Destroying this data reduces the risks of identity theft, financial theft, reputational harm, or corporate espionage.

Data on storage devices no longer in use by an individual or for business purposes by an organization has the chance of being accessed by threat actors who may use the data for identity theft, compromising privacy, financial theft, reputational harm, or corporate espionage. Once the data is destroyed, it is no longer available to those who would choose to use the data in this manner.

Physical data destruction such as degaussing or shredding will make a hard disk drive or SSD inoperable so that none of the data, software, or other programs on the device will function. Erasure software can be used in such a manner that it erases only specific files, leaving Windows or other operating systems intact when an organization desires to repurpose the asset after wiping the data. The comprehensive approach to drive eraser software will remove all data and programs, including the operating system.

When degaussing a traditional hard drive, the magnetically coated platters that store data are completely erased. Degaussing involves subjecting a hard drive to a magnetic field, which essentially demagnetizes the platters. The drive is rendered completely inoperable because there are no longer tracks and sectors on the platter which are used to organize and locate data.

Degaussing provides permanent removal of data and is recommended as a step in the data sanitization of traditional hard drives, tape, and other magnetic media. After degaussing, devices can be physically destroyed using a special shredder—the process guards against the possibility of any potential for possible data recovery.

We’ve seen videos of do-it-yourself data destruction with nail guns, hammers, and automobiles. And while these methods physically destroy devices, they don’t provide a verifiable, certified method to ensure data is inaccessible and unrecoverable. Destroying a hard drive with a hammer might render it inoperable, but because Ontrack engineers are known for their miraculous data recovery rescues (including a hard drive from the crashed Space Shuttle), anything is possible.

There are several methods that result in secure data deletion. The use of erasing software is recommended when the storage media is to be reused. For example, when re-selling IT equipment that already contains information. If the software is certified and approved, it can be used on spinning Hard Disk Drives (HDD), Solid State Drives (SSD), mobile phones and memory cards. The software then also deletes the hidden areas and remapped sectors. Deletion is done according to government standards such as NIST, DOD and many more. Physical destruction of hard drives is another option. You can either expose hard drives (HDD) and tapes to a strong magnetic field with a degausser or simply grind the entire device down to small fragments with a hard drive chewer (a so-called shredder).

Granulators, also known as shredders, are machines that rip, tear or smash a hard drive or SSD into small pieces, making it inoperable and not possible to recover any data. Data that is no longer need by the organization for the business, legal, or retention requirements can be safely and permanently destroyed using a granulator. Organizations can reduce the risk of security breaches and reduce storage costs by disposing of data no longer needed.

Best practices can involve using data erasure software to securely overwrite data on HDDs and SSDs, including the hidden areas and remapped sectors. Deletion is done according to government standards such as NIST, DOD and many more.

Physical destruction of hard drives can be done with a degausser that uses a powerful magnetic field, which erases not only the data but removes the servo tracks, rendering the media unusable. The most obvious destruction solution is to shred hard drives and other media into tiny, tiny pieces. This is called shredding or fragmentation. These machines smash a hard drive or SSD into pieces so small that the data cannot be recovered from the media or memory chips.

If the grinding takes place with correct equipment intended for safe data destruction, it is impossible to reproduce any data. However, if a shredder doesn't create small enough pieces, from a memory chip, for example, an SSD or a mobile phone chip can pass through without being destroyed. If this happens, the content could be recovered by data recovery experts such as Ontrack.