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Vector-AG Technology Limited
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Can deleted data be recovered from an SSD?

Yes, it is possible to recover deleted data from an SSD (Solid State Drive). However, the process of data recovery from an SSD is more complex than from a traditional hard disk drive (HDD).

 

When data is deleted from an SSD, the data is not immediately erased from the drive. Instead, the SSD marks the space occupied by the deleted data as available for new data to be written. This means that the deleted data may still be present on the drive until new data is written over it.

 

However, SSDs use a process called wear leveling, which spreads data evenly across the drive to prevent overuse of certain areas. This means that deleted data may be scattered across multiple memory cells, making it more difficult to recover.

 

Additionally, SSDs employ a process called TRIM, which is designed to optimize performance by erasing data blocks that are no longer in use. This means that if TRIM is enabled on the SSD, deleted data may be erased more quickly and may be more difficult to recover.

 

Despite these challenges, it is still possible to recover deleted data from an SSD using specialized forensic tools and techniques. These tools can analyze the SSD at a low level to search for and reconstruct deleted data. However, the success of data recovery from an SSD depends on various factors, such as the amount of time that has passed since the data was deleted, the extent of wear leveling and TRIM, and the specific methods used by the forensic tool.

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What is ITAD?

degaussing report

IT Asset Disposition (ITAD) is the process of disposing of obsolete or unwanted IT equipment in an ethical and environmentally friendly manner. With the rapid pace of technology innovation, IT equipment can quickly become outdated, leaving companies with a significant amount of e-waste. ITAD is an essential process in ensuring that these electronics do not end up in landfills and that sensitive data is securely destroyed.

The Importance of ITAD

ITAD is an essential process that benefits both the environment and companies. The proper disposal of electronic waste helps to prevent environmental pollution and the release of hazardous chemicals into the environment. E-waste is a significant contributor to environmental pollution, and it is estimated that up to 50 million tons of e-waste is produced globally each year. Without proper disposal, this waste can end up in landfills, where it can take hundreds of years to decompose and release harmful chemicals into the soil and water.

In addition to the environmental benefits, ITAD also helps companies to protect their sensitive data. When IT equipment is disposed of, any data stored on the device must be permanently deleted to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands. ITAD providers use specialized software or hardware to erase data securely, ensuring that any sensitive information is permanently destroyed.

 

The ITAD Process

The ITAD process involves several steps, including assessment, data destruction, and disposal. The first step is to assess the IT equipment to determine its value and condition. This assessment helps to determine the best course of action for the equipment, whether it should be resold, recycled, or disposed of.

The next step is data destruction. All data on the equipment must be permanently erased to ensure that sensitive information is not accessible. This process is critical for companies that handle confidential information, such as financial or healthcare data.

Once the data has been securely erased, the equipment can be disposed of, recycled, or resold. ITAD providers will ensure that the equipment is disposed of in an ethical and environmentally friendly manner, following local regulations and guidelines.

Choosing an ITAD Provider

Choosing a reputable ITAD provider is essential to ensure that the IT equipment is disposed of correctly. When choosing an ITAD provider, it is essential to consider several factors, including the provider’s experience, certifications, and compliance with local regulations.

Experienced providers will have the knowledge and expertise to assess the equipment and determine the best course of action for disposing of it. Certifications ensure that the provider follows ethical and environmentally friendly practices.

Compliance with local regulations is also crucial. ITAD providers must follow local regulations and guidelines for the disposal of e-waste. Failure to comply with these regulations can result in fines and legal repercussions for both the provider and the company.

Conclusion

ITAD is an essential process for companies that want to dispose of their IT equipment correctly. The process helps to protect the environment and prevent the release of hazardous chemicals into the soil and water. It also ensures that sensitive data is permanently erased, protecting companies from data breaches and cyber threats. Choosing a reputable ITAD provider is crucial to ensure that the IT equipment is disposed of correctly and ethically.

 

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What is hard disk degausser

A hard disk degausser is a specialized device designed to erase data from magnetic storage media, such as hard disk drives (HDDs) and magnetic tapes. By generating a powerful magnetic field, degaussers render the data on these storage devices unreadable, ensuring the complete and secure deletion of sensitive information. In this article, we will delve into the function, benefits, and applications of hard disk degaussers.

Function of a Hard Disk Degausser
Magnetic storage media, such as HDDs, store data in the form of magnetic patterns on their surfaces. A hard disk degausser works by emitting a powerful magnetic field that disrupts these patterns, effectively erasing the stored data. The process is non-discriminatory, meaning it erases all data on the device, regardless of its significance or protection measures. 

Benefits of Using a Hard Disk Degausser
1. Data Security: Degaussing ensures that sensitive data is irretrievable, providing a high level of data security. This is particularly important for organizations dealing with confidential information, such as financial institutions, healthcare providers, and government agencies.
2. Compliance: Many industries have strict regulations in place for data disposal. Using a hard disk degausser helps organizations comply with these regulations and avoid potential fines or legal consequences.

Applications of Hard Disk Degaussers
1. Data Centers: Data centers often need to dispose of large volumes of outdated or faulty storage devices. Degaussing is an efficient and secure way to erase data from these devices before disposal or recycling.
2. Government and Military: Government agencies and military organizations handle sensitive information that requires secure deletion methods. Hard disk degaussers provide a reliable solution for erasing classified data from magnetic storage media.
3. Healthcare Industry: The healthcare industry deals with confidential patient data, which must be securely erased to maintain privacy. Degaussing ensures that patient information is permanently deleted from storage devices.
4. Financial Institutions: Banks and other financial institutions handle sensitive customer data that must be protected. Degaussing provides an effective means of securely erasing data from storage devices before they are disposed of or repurposed. 

Conclusion Hard disk degaussers play a crucial role in data security and regulatory compliance across various industries. By generating a powerful magnetic field, these devices ensure the permanent and secure deletion of sensitive information from magnetic storage media, making them an indispensable tool in the modern world of data protection.

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What is data erasure?

數據銷毀 (Data Erasure) 主要針對儲存資料嘅電子設備, 包括電腦入面嘅 hard disk, memory card, 電話等等可以儲存資料嘅設備, 當你需要處理呢啲設備, 例如壞咗或者唔再用要棄置嘅時候, 就有需要先將入邊嘅資料徹底銷毀. 如果係電腦做普通format hard disk 係唔可以將資料徹底刪除, 通過數據恢復軟件有機會將資料還原, 如果hard disk壞咗, 亦都冇辦法做到format.

所以我哋會用比較徹底嘅方法, 一般我哋會用消磁機去將hard disk嘅資料徹底銷毀, 原理係利用強大磁場改變硬碟上磁性材料的磁極排列，從而使存儲的數據無法讀取。當硬碟消磁時，磁場迫使磁性顆粒的磁極隨機排列，使原本的數據信息丟失，達到徹底刪除數據的目的. 好處係一般只需要一分鐘內完成, 但係完成後hard disk唔可以再用返。 除咗消磁, 另外可以用抹除嘅方法, 原理係喺hard disk每一個位置上面寫上覆寫資料, 將成個hard disk之前的資料覆蓋, 好處係做完之後過hard disk可以重用, 但就比較花時間, 一般會適合想重用返個hard disk嘅用家. 另外亦都可以透過物理破壞, 即係整爛個hard disk去銷毀data, 但一般都建議做咗消磁處理先, 因為理論上data仲係碟面上面, 如果冇消磁都有可能讀到好少部分嘅資料出嚟, 雖然機會唔大.

如果係電話, 通常透過回復原廠設定就可以將資料銷毀, 因為好多電話本身有進行加密, 回復原廠設定後, 加密嘅資料會被刪除, 所以一般都可以將資料徹底銷毀, 如果唔放心或者部機開唔著就要進行物理破壞, 要拆開部機將入面粒memory chip 整爛.

所有裝置都有唔同嘅方法去徹底銷毀數據, 有需要可以同我諮詢.

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What is data recovery

數據恢復 (Data Recovery)簡單嚟講, 就係將你壞咗嘅裝置入面的資料恢復, 或者將你唔見咗或者刪除咗嘅資料恢復. 譬如你部電腦壞咗, 外置hard disk 或者 USB 手指壞咗, 將入邊啲資料恢復出嚟. 處理方法有好多種, 主要睇返情況而定, 有時電腦壞咗, 資料未必有問題, 因為資料係儲存喺hard disk 或者 SSD入面, 如果好彩hard disk 或者 SSD冇壞, 咁直接喺第二部機讀返出嚟就得. 如果hard disk有問題, 咁就要睇返屬於乜情況, 通常磁頭問題比較常見, hard disk入面會有磁頭讀寫資料, 如果磁頭出咗問題, 好多時過hard disk會有怪聲, 呢啲情況就要即刻斷電, 因為如果繼續通電, 有可能令到入面隻碟嚴重刮花, 咁就有可能做唔到data出嚟. 處理方法係要換過好嘅磁頭入去, 而換嘅過程係需要喺無塵環境進行, 因為如果有塵喺hard disk入面, 就有可能導致碟面刮花. 另外, 換入去嘅詞頭都需要同原本個磁頭一樣先可以, 有時hard disk 就算 model 一樣, 磁頭都可能唔一樣. 除咗磁頭問題, 有時你可以讀到入面啲資料, 但係好慢, 或者開唔到, 咁就可能係個hard disk有bad sectors, 簡單嚟講即係hard disk有啲位置壞咗, 當電腦嘗試讀呢啲位置, 因為有問題而會好慢或者hang機, 呢啲情況我哋可以用工具將冇問題嘅資料讀出嚟, 而係有問題地方嘅資料有可能會冇左, 似乎情況而定.

如果USB手指壞咗, 首先要睇下係唔係手指入面粒chip爛咗, 如果爛咗就冇辦法處理, 其他常見問題包括插入電腦後問你要唔要格式化, 呢啲情況一般係分區出咗問題, 用專業數據恢復軟件好多時都可以將資料恢復, 但如果插入電腦後冇反應, 就要嘗試用儀器直接讀取memory chip, 睇下可唔可以攞返資料.

如果係唔小心刪除左資料, 刪除完之後冇再save其他新資料落去, 咁都有好大機會恢復到出嚟, 但係如果刪除咗之後, 有放過好多資料入去, 或者繼續用咗好耐, 咁機會就比較細, 因為刪除左資料後, 其實資料仲喺hard disk入面, 電腦係將資料嘅位置信息刪除, 開放返個位置放心資料入去, 所以如果有新資料放咗喺同一個位置, 咁刪除咗嘅資料就會俾覆蓋, 做唔返出嚟.

呢啲係比較想見嘅情況, 如果有其他問題歡迎致電查詢.

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The risks of erasing hard drives only with software

There are a number of risks associated with the use of software for hard drive erasing and ‘cleaning’ especially when companies want to dispose of their old hard drives for recycling purposes. Below are some of the risk factors associated with hard drive erasure:

  • Regardless of how sophisticated the software program is for hard drive erasing, not all data can be erased on a hard drive disk due to bad sectors. Bad sectors prevent software from erasing over them and no hard drive disk is 100% error free. In fact, as hard drives age, they develop faults and data degradation where corruption occurs. This means that there is no 100% guarantee that data can be fully removed from a disk using software only. 
  • Software erasure doesn’t prevent state actors or other government agencies from being able to re-access old data. The data is merely written over with a new layer of information. There is no physical removal or destruction of the original information. A major risk for security companies and agencies that want to replace their older systems.
  • Software erasing leaves companies liable to damages due to data breaches and data theft, which can occur during the disposal process of older systems which have been erased only with software.
  • Software erasure can’t be used on damaged hard drives that have failed or get corrupted. This leaves all the original data on the volume. 

For software erasure, there are clear advantages and disadvantages which we go in-depth in this analysis, however for most companies wanting to securely remove data, degaussing is an essential must for total compliance on data protection and disposal.

So how does degaussing offer a better alternative and why should you consider investing in a degausser? Take a look at some of the benefits of a degausser and how they can be used in your enterprise.  Degaussing is the ultimate insurance policy for your data needs, guaranteeing 100% the destruction of your data in all circumstances, and if you are interested in exploring our degausser machines, you can see our automatic, manual and NSA approved degaussers for total security. 

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Destroy Drives Using A Hard Drive Crusher

The advantages of using a Hard Drive Crusher

Computers are an integral part of modern life and we all know the wide range of ways in which we use them. The problem comes when the computer reaches the end of it’s useful life and it is time to dispose of it or send it for professional recycling.  Packed on your Hard Drive inside your computer or laptop is an abundance of data, much, if not all of which is information you would not like others to have access to.  It is essential therefore that you have procedures for the secure destruction of data prior to computer disposal.

There are a number of ways to destroy a hard drive including erasing, shredding and wiping, but for the purposes of this article we shall consider the use of a Hard Drive Crusher.

What is a Hard Drive and why use a Hard Drive Crusher?

A Hard drive (sometimes abbreviated as HD or HDD) is a non-volatile memory hardware device which permanently stores and retrieves information.There are many variations, but their sizes are generally 3.5″ and 2.5″ for desktop and laptop computers respectively. A hard drive consists of one or more platters to which data is written using a magnetic head, all inside of an air-sealed casing. Hard Drives may be either internal or external but both types can be used to store just about any kind of data be it music, pictures, text, software programmes etc. This data is written to the part of the Hard Drive called the Platter.

It is the Platter that is the target for the Hard Drive Crusher to physically damage beyond repair such that it cannot be put back into a computer and still accessed.  A solution such as the Crunch 250 is a perfect example of a specially designed machine capable of destroying a hard drive in just 9 seconds.  A desktop, office friendly machine such as this is a good solution for processing any number of Hard Drives as it is easy to operate and quick to use.  You can easily crush 250 Hard drives in an hour with a Crunch 250.  It can be installed in any office, and by being used “in-house” it negates the need to send your hard drives off site and entrust your precious data to third parties.  It also provides an ongoing solution so that you don’t have to gather up large numbers of drives and store them while you wait for a mobile crushing service truck to make an appointment.

Is there anything better than a Hard Drive Crusher?

While for some industries simply crushing the hard drive is sufficient evidence that their data is no longer accessible to prying eyes, for some data users an even more robust solution is required.

VS Security Products manufacture a range of degaussers which can be used to remove user data and servo control data from hard drives before they are processed by the Hard Drive Crusher.  Manual degaussers such as the V660 HDD Evo allow you to erase up to 20 hard drives every hour whilst an automatic degausser such as the DataGone can erase up to 200 every hour.

Whether your business requires just crushing, or prefers to degauss and crush, VS Security Products offers an extra tool for ultimate assurance that your responsibilities with regards to data destruction have been fully met and that is its unique Data Destruction Auditor system.  This is a program which can be linked to your Hard Drive Crusher and it will provide you with recorded and printable evidence of all the media you have destroyed.

In Summary:

A Hard Drive Crusher is a very effective, simple and quick method to destroy hard drives without them leaving your premises.  It may be enough for your needs on its own or it can be joined with a degausser and a Data Destruction Auditor system to provide true peace of mind for the security conscious computer user.

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Hard Drive Destruction Methods

What is the best way to set about Hard Drive Destruction?

Computers are an integral part of life today. We use them at home, at school and at work.  We store everything that we hold dear on them such as our photos, our contact lists, our course work, our bank details and our company secrets. This information is all stored on the Hard Drive and the question is how do you protect your data when the time comes for you to change from one computer to another?

The Hard Drive can be removed from the computer and destroyed in a number of ways. The key point is to make sure that after you have finished with it the data which is stored on the magnetic Platter inside the drive is not accessible to prying eyes. 

The method of destruction that you choose may be to some extent dependant on who you are and how secret your data actually is. Your holiday snaps are somewhat less interesting to the bad guys than the medical records of A. N. Celebrity for example!

Shred? Wipe? Crush? Degauss?

Hard Drive destruction is achieved by one or more of the following ways:

Shredding –literally “slicing into small pieces”is undertaken in bulk by companies who offer this service.  You can either send them your drives or they may bring a shredder to your premises.  Obviously if you send your drives off site to be shredded you need to be sure of secure transport arrangements once the data is out of your control.  Similarly, if you need to collect up enough drives to warrant a visit from the mobile crusher you need a secure means to store the drives while you collect up enough of them to warrant the cost of a visit.

Wiping is done by the use of downloadable software. While this may be the most cost effect solution to a small user it is worth noting that it is a time consuming process as the software overwrites the drive multiple times, and it does not work on faulty drives. There may even be areas of a drive that your computer has abandoned as bad sectors which will still contain data after you have tried to wipe the drive using this method.  Wiping is therefore not considered to be a high security solution.

Crushing means that the Hard drive is subjected to physical damage usually ending up with either shattering or piercing the Platter and folding up the casing such that it is not possible to connect up the Drive and read the data. This method of Hard Drive Destruction is suitable for a wide variety of people as it offers a very flexible and relatively low cost solution.  Unlike Shredding, a table-top machine such as the Crunch 250 from VS Security Products can be placed in an organisation so that you keep control of all you drives in house, and you can destroy an individual drive in just 9 seconds, or you can collect them up in the safety of your organisation and crush them at the rate of 250 per hour.

Degaussing means subjecting the Hard drive to a high-energy magnetic field which has the effect of scrambling all the minute particles of recorded bits of data into random and completely unreadable configurations. Since, in the first instance it is the data recorded on the Platter which is the thing you are trying to destroy, using a degausser is the absolutely most secure method of Hard Drive destruction. For more information please see our Introduction to Degaussers.

Deciding which method of Hard Drive destruction is best for you depends on several factors including how sensitive your data is, how many hard drives you need to destroy, how much you can spend on a solution.

One additional aid for the most security minded is offered by VS Security Products in the form of its unique Data Destruction Auditor system. This is a program which can be linked to their Hard Drive Crusher – the Crunch 250 – and their degaussers including the DataGauss, the DataGone and the SDD Master. It will provide you with recorded and printable evidence of all the media you have destroyed. 

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Why should my business invest in a hard drive degausser?

Using a hard drive degausser in your business can provide total protection for your customer or employee data, but what are some of the advantages of investing in a data degausser? Below we explore some of the advantages that secure data erasure can provide businesses, not just from a practical standpoint, but also, from the point of view of the customer. 

With data security becoming more prevalent and following on from the European Union’s strict GDPR law, businesses are looking for solutions whereby they can protect their customer and internal data while also complying with legislation to ensure safe data disposal. 

Here are some of the advantages of hard drive degaussing and the use of magnetic data erasure in businesses today: 

Data security compliance for GDPR and data law

GDPR is one of the world’s strictest data compliance laws affecting all businesses that trade with or operate in the European Union. Data security has increasingly faced scrutiny after several high profile data breaches in the past several years have made governments step up their efforts to ensure people’s personal data is protected. 

Hard drive degaussing can help businesses erase data from a large number of different mediums to ensure that customer data is properly handled. This is particularly the case when systems are being upgraded and replaced with newer frameworks. The hard drive disposal process is delicate and should data not be erased from all mediums, businesses affected by the new GDPR data protection law can be held liable if data is hacked or accessed by a third party without customer consent. In this situation, disposing of hard drives requires secure data erasure through the use of a degausser so that it cannot be retrieved later. 

Destroying a hard drive’s sensitive data

For many businesses holding sensitive data – being able to erase hard drives securely is a must. This is because a simple hard drive wipe with software doesn’t magnetically remove the data from the actual hard disk itself. Sensitive data, particularly if handled by security companies, the defense industry and other government departments needs to be disposed of with the highest level of erasure, and without third parties being able to recover the data. 

Sensitive data erasure with degaussing is also beneficial for businesses that want to reassure investors and stakeholders that there are internal procedures for data handling and that these are being followed strictly to ensure data safety. 

Hard drive degaussing audits for transparency

Businesses can leverage hard drive degaussing audits to demonstrate their processes for data erasure. This information can be provided to senior stakeholders in the business, managers and other C-level executives to show hard drives being erased and the full reporting of each set of disks that have successfully gone through the process. These reports can also be used elsewhere for legal investigations and for general business data security practices. 

You may like to see the DataGauss XL-LG that comes with an auditing tool. 

Ensuring customer data doesn’t fall into the wrong hands

Being able to erase hard disks securely through degaussing helps businesses erase customer data completely from their systems. This can then be confirmed to customers in writing and supports business transparency as well as ensuring that no third parties can access older data or break into systems to gain sensitive data. 

Supporting internal data processes

Hard drive degaussers can be brought into a company and form part of the data erasure process. Businesses will already have existing processes and may wish to further strengthen their data disposal by adding a layer of security through degaussing. By investing in a hard drive degausser unit, a business can support the internal data erasure processes, create transparent reports and provide total assurance to customers and internal stakeholders that processes are being improved and upgraded for the highest level of data security. 

Improving public image through data protection guarantees

Outside of the practical elements of hard drive degaussing, businesses can also defend their reputation publicly and promote their use of hard drive degaussing as a way to properly handle data. This can strengthen the trust factor for a business with its customer base and also show external stakeholders, governments and organizations that data security is being taken seriously. 

Explore our full range of hard drive degaussers and hard disk destroyers and see how you can secure your business data for the future and improve your reputation through transparency and proper data handling. You can also speak to one of our advisors who can provide you with further insight on the hard drive degaussers we provide and what product will be best suited for your organization or business.  

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Hard Drive erasure software vs degaussing. Which is better?

When it comes to hard drive degaussing and software erasure tools, there are a number of distinct differences between the two methods that businesses and organizations need to be aware of. 

Using software erasure tools to erase a hard drive disk have some upsides for businesses however there are considerable disadvantages of the software erasing method that add a high degree of risk and uncertainty for those that choose this method of volume erasure over degaussing. 

Below you will see both the advantages and disadvantages of using software to erase hard disks and where data degaussing with a hard drive degausser or a destroyer, can be more appropriate. 

Advantages of software to erase data

  • Often easy to use, and gets the job done in a few clicks of a mouse.
  • It’s cheap, and can be applied to a number of computers and laptops at the office depending on the licence you buy.
  • Software erases existing data on the disk.

Disadvantages of software erasure

  • Every hard drive has bad sectors and the software is unable to erase these parts. In a typical hard drive, these bad sectors will not be accessible by any kind of overwrite software program, and the user would need to possess the hard drive’s original bitmap to be able to erase these. Therefore, the data in those sectors will remain and can be accessed at a later stage.
  • Software doesn’t erase the data on the disk. In fact, it overwrites a new layer of data, leaving the previous data layer intact.
  • Hard drives that have developed faults, or crashed, and can’t be booted with software, will inevitably have large chunks of data remaining on them, which can’t be erased.
  • Hard drives often possess an internal auto-recovery function which is known as a Ghost List or G-List for short. This recovery tool enables the disk to automatically save your file and document data without your knowledge to prevent data loss. This portion of the hard drive cannot be accessed by software programs under any circumstances and therefore retains key data information long after you’ve used the software to erase the rest of the disk.
  • The BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) may limit you in terms of the size of disks you can erase. In particular, if you have upgraded to 1TB or 2TB drives or larger, there can be restrictions where not all data can be erased – requiring different software for different types of hard drive volumes.
  • Hard drives also come in two types of standards, SCSI and IDE, meaning that the overwrite software programs you buy must be able to work sometimes on two formats requiring two sets of programs as one cannot write on the other.
  • Software can’t physically remove the data from hard drives no matter how many times it is used to overwrite the data – problematic especially for companies and government departments that require a complete erasure solution for sensitive data.
  • Software erasing is not an effective insurance policy against data theft and leaves businesses and organizations exposed to data leaks should hard drives be disposed, re-sold or re-used by other parts of the business without the same level of security.
  • Auditors and insurers looking into issues such as data security and data breaches will review systems and solutions in place by the data controller (Your business or organization). If software erasure is the primary method of data removal, this may be considered an unsatisfactory policy to protect and erase data – potentially exposing you to millions of dollars in damages and being void of certain insurance policies.

There are clearly a large number of disadvantages for the software operator in the case of erasing data from a hard drive, and for many businesses and organizations that choose to use this method only.  For small businesses and freelancers, this may be more of an appropriate method to erase a disk however in a majority of cases, software is not a viable solution given the high risk nature of data falling into the wrong hands, and the costs of potential lawsuits or losing insurance covers. 

Degaussing on the other hand provides some upsides for businesses as well as disadvantages that we will look at below:

Advantages of data degaussing

  • The disk of the hard drive and all its data will be magnetically erased – therefore the data will be completely unretrievable and physically no longer exist on the disk itself. 
  • With a hard drive degausser, the operator can completely audit their data erasure and provide transparent logs that prove the volume data was destroyed (see our popular DataGauss LG degausser for more information.)
  • Hard drive degaussing eliminates the risk of data being recovered either by another company, a foreign government or a criminal enterprise, therefore when a company or organization is audited about their data security processes, a hard drive degausser will ensure that data is unrecoverable in any scenario. 
  • Data degaussing provides businesses with the option to not only erase the data that is on the volume of the disk itself, but to safely dispose of their hard drives for the purpose of recycling. 
  • Old systems that are no longer in use, including hard drives from the 90s, tapes, and magnetic media, can be fully erased by default regardless of format, age or what’s on the disk. Degaussing destroys all data on any medium of this kind – which is not possible with traditional erasure software. 
  • Data degaussers are easy to operate and often take just a few seconds to fully erase the entire disk (See our Degausser range to check the speed of degaussing). In comparison to software, which can take hours or days depending on the number of disks, degaussing is a huge time saver. 
  • Degaussing can also be combined with data destruction, giving operators the possibility of crushing their own hard drives for disposal once they have been degaussed. (See our Crunch 250 Hard Drive Destroyer for more details). 
  • And finally, degaussers are highly recommended for businesses, and especially government departments that require the highest level of data security, to protect industrial secrets, information on individuals and much more. (We have NSA, NATO and DoD approved degaussers.)

Disadvantages of degaussing

  • Using a degausser can be more costly for a small business that has very few HDDs to erase, and is not ideal for the individual user or freelancer. 
  • Degaussing machines require a place to be stored (in an office, or under a desk) unlike software which is a download or DVD. 

For degaussing, there are a number of advantages over disadvantages, but most importantly, in this analysis, the business owner must understand that degaussing is a complete destruction solution for data vs software, which is merely an overwrite – and not a viable way of truly erasing data from hard drives. Depending on your use case, software may be sufficient, but for many, the high risk nature of not being able to fully erase data from the disk is likely to be far more costly for the owner when facing any kind of data breach in the future. 

In conclusion, erasing data with software may be a convenient, cheap solution to erase a volume for re-use by small companies or individuals, but in most cases, businesses will be taking a huge risk with their data by choosing this option, and exposing themselves to costs in an era where data laws are imposing strict penalties for oversights in the data space – and companies are being held accountable for failures, often in public.  

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If you are interested in learning more about how you can benefit from a degausser, and what kind of machine would be suitable, get in contact and an advisor will be able to recommend you a number of options. Alternatively you can call us during business hours to discover more about our product range and speak with one of our engineers. We ship and sell degaussers for a wide variety of organizations and businesses in more than 30 countries, and can provide you with an unlimited lifetime technical guarantee on any unit you buy from us – a world first, and only offered by Verity Systems.