Advantages Of Outsourcing Your Electronic Data Destruction

The safest way to do this is by outsourcing the hard drive destruction to a reputable electronic data destruction service. The following are a few advantages of using an electronic data destruction service:

1. Prevent data from being restored

You may consider wiping the hard drive and then disposing of it or reusing it. Even if you properly delete the data from the hard drive there are still methods of restoring that data. The most effective way to delete the data is to destroy the hard drive itself. Do not assume that the hard drive is safe to dispose of casually–anyone can retrieve the hard drive in an attempt to obtain whatever data was on there.

2. Ensure complete destruction

Attempting to destroy a hard drive without the proper equipment or know-how may not actually destroy the hard drive completely. A professional electronic data destruction service will ensure that the hard drive is completely destroyed so there’s no chance it can be started up again or the data can be restored.

3. Free up physical storage space

Some businesses feel it might just be safer to store their hard drives on-site instead of attempting to destroy them. This way they will know where they are at all times, however, doing this takes up a significant amount of physical space, especially for larger businesses or businesses who have longevity in their niche. Keeping old hard drives around when there’s no use for them is an inefficient use of space.

4. Prevent physical theft

Besides being an inefficient use of space, storing hard drives on-site that are no longer used leaves them vulnerable to physical theft. A disgruntled employee or ex-employee could find a way to steal old hard drives and sell them to the competition or to cybercriminals who can use the data against you. Having the hard drives destroyed is the safest course of action.

5. Prevent liability

An electronic data destruction service will provide you with a certificate of destruction that can be used to prove you took steps to ensure the complete destruction of data. If you attempt to destroy your hard drives on your own and do not succeed, and it results in the theft of customer or employee data, you may be held accountable for not securing private data.

These are five reasons why you should outsource the destruction of your hard drives to a reputable electronic data destruction service like AccuShred. For more information about our electronic data destruction services or for information about how we can help you remain compliant with HIPAA record retention rules and regulations, contact us at AccuShred today.