There are three primary methods of data sanitization that we employ at Techno Rescue – Erasure, Degaussing, and Shredding. 

Erasure: We only utilize NIST 800-88 approved software to perform complete data erasure on various types of drives including SAS, SATA, and SSDs. The NIST 800-88 standard replaced the earlier DoD 5220.22-M method for data erasure. This method of data sanitization is ideal for clients who store data on recently manufactured high-capacity drives which carry strong residual value. Techno Rescue can generate and provide serialized certification logs for all drives at the conclusion of the erasure process. These logs are typically saved as .pdf files. We can provide this solution onsite at your offices or data centers anywhere in the world. We also have the ability to erase mass quantities of drives at our facilities.    

Degaussing: Degaussing eliminates data physically (not via software as erasure does) from the hard drive platters or tape film by producing a magnetic field sufficient to neutralize the magnetic particles. As such, this is an excellent method of data sanitization for traditional magnetic HDDs, but will not be workable for SSDs which use flash memory. Degaussing is widely considered to be the most efficient means of physically destroying magnetic media. Techno Rescue has both plant-based and mobile degaussers to help you achieve data sanitization anywhere in the world. 

Shredding: Physical shredding is typically the cheapest method of secure data destruction. This method utilizes an industrial strength shredder with sharp, rotating blades to tear hard drive casing and platters into extremely small, irregular pieces which are impossible to reconstruct. Techno Rescue is proud to use both plant-based shredders as well as mobile shred trucks which can be deployed to your offices nationwide. 

If you’re unsure of which method will work best within your budget and requirements, please call a Techno Rescue sales representative at 800-230-5280 to review these options and make an informed decision. 

Case Study: A medium-sized defense contractor with offices in Reston, VA needed to use an ITAD company to securely remove data storage assets (being replaced with updated models), and to destroy their sensitive data hosted on servers at a local data center, in order to comply with their internal data security protocols. 

Due to our combination of certifications, including NAID AAA and e-Stewards, Techno Rescue was chosen to complete this project. Our data destruction technicians were dispatched from our facility in Frederick, MD to the client’s data center to perform the task through the following steps: 

• Onsite audit of server and hard drive serial numbers with barcode scanners, matching them against the client provided list of assets for destruction, flagging any mismatches or additional serial numbers. 
• Physical removal of both servers and hard drives from the data center racks and transfer to one of Techno Rescue’s 26’ shred trucks in the parking lot outside the data center. The HDDs were transported in securely locked bins.
• Representatives from the defense company watched as our technicians unlocked the hard drive bins, and physically shredded all 864 hard drives onsite. 
• The clients signed off on a Chain of Custody document that Techno Rescue had securely removed all assets in scope. The document was promptly scanned and emailed to the company’s main HQ. 
• Techno Rescue transported the shredded hard drives and servers in a GPS-monitored truck back to our Frederick, MD facility for final processing. 
• Techno Rescue completed the project by providing the client with a final audit report, revenue share report including recoverable value from the servers, and certificates of destruction and recycling. 

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