Hard Drive Degaussing
Concept Management can offer a degaussing service but wouldn’t recommend degaussing in isolation. A far better and more professional way to destroy a hard drive is the Degauss and Destroy method. Degaussing is a fast and efficient way to remove all audio, video and data signals from magnetic storage media, such as backup tapes and hard drives. Degaussers come in all shapes and sizes and the most suitable model for your needs will depend on your budget, the volume of drives you have and whether you need a government approved solution.
Once degaussed the media should then be physically destroyed, which will provide tangible evidence that the hard drive has been destroyed. There are a couple of destruction methods available, the first being shredding whereby the hard drive is pulverised into tiny bits by a large shredding machine. Whilst very effective, unless you have large volumes of hard drives, this method can be very expensive. In addition, retaining control of your hard drives and your data during this process can prove very difficult.
Another method is to use a hard drive crusher which bends the hard drive, destroying the platter inside and rendering it useless. Table-top hard drive crushers are available to buy to enable you to complete the entire hard drive destruction process in-house, both quietly and efficiently. One benefit of this method is that you can retain control of your hard drives at all times and provide a secure chain of custody.
For deagussing hard drive destruction, the Degauss & Destroy process is a practical, affordable and effective way to destroy a hard drive and is a requirement of CPNI (the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure), which regulates the UK’s Police forces. CPNI stipulate this process and many security and government organisations now recommend that storage media such as hard drives and back-up tapes are “physically destroyed after degaussing”.
Concept Management use the Verity Systems DataGauss, which offers a no-nonsense automatic, permanent way to erase hard drives and back-up tapes quickly and effectively with its powerful 9000 gauss force. It offers fast, permanent erasure of medium quantities of hard drives and tapes, with the ability to be completely portable and offers use at multiple locations.