Summary: In this blog we will discuss the top 5 reasons to choose a certified IT Asset Disposition company (ITAD), why having a certified IT Asset disposition company is an important part of every data destruction policy and what are the pitfalls of hiring a regular uncertified service provider?
As the name suggests, an IT Asset Disposition company specializes in disposition of those storage devices that are no longer in use by organizations or those that have reached their end-of-lifecycle. When an organization decides to discard and dispose of their devices, they generally hire an ITAD company to get rid of their unwanted IT asset in a secure and eco-friendly manner. A well-defined and well planned data destruction strategy must be a part of any organizational data destruction policy. Decommissioning the servers and dumping of hardware such as laptop, monitors, and hard drives cannot be carried out at will as it has both security and environmental challenges. You may read our blog on dumpster diving and find out how such frivolous practices can lead to massive data breaches.
The consideration of selecting the ITAD Company today goes beyond just the capability of the organization to dispose of their IT Assets owing to stringent global data regulatory norms and rising cases of data breaches. Hence, we take a look at ‘the top 5 reasons to choose a certified provider for IT Asset Disposition’.
1. Helps Mitigate Risks of Data Breach
In order to mitigate risks of data breach, selection of certified vendors is a must to ensure secure and permanent destruction of data with due diligence and proofs of destruction. Ignorance of due diligence in selecting a certified and trusted vendor can hamper or completely stall the progress of any organization. Hence, a certified ITAD company guarantees peace of mind from any threat to data of your stakeholders. A classic example of ignoring due diligence while disposing of IT Assets at the end of life is Morgan Stanley Bank that ignored the industry standard by selecting a lower priced service provider for decommissioning bank’s old servers. This negligence on part of the bank led to data breach episode and subsequently resulted in lawsuits worth millions of dollars and loss of customer trust.
2. Helps Meet Compliance Requirements
An organizational data destruction policy mandates auditable document that certify that data was actually destroyed or wiped from the discarded IT asset. A reliable, trusted and certified ITAD vendor offers complete documentation of every wiped devices and destruction performed by them to ensure that you meet your audit and compliance requirements. A chain of custody document is maintained by a certified IT asset disposition company complying to ADISA, e-Stewards or R2V3 guidelines of data destruction. Likewise, Certificate of Destruction (COD) is provided by the ITAD Company that act as a proof of destruction verifying that all devices have been wiped, destroyed or recycled according to global erasure standards and guidelines.
3. Possess Certification
Industry standards and certifications for ITAD ensure that these certified IT asset disposition companies and recyclers are being accredited by third-party auditor and certifying bodies to safely dispose of and recycle IT assets as per the global norms. Some of the important certifications and certifying bodies include Responsible Recycling (R2) by SERI (Sustainable Electronics and Recycling International), NAID AAA certifications by iSigma, e-Stewards by Basel Action Network, ADISA’s IT Asset Recovery certification and global ISO standards for Quality Management (ISO 9001), Environmental Management (ISO14001), & Health and Safety (ISO 45001). Most of the trusted ITAD vendors are certified by one or more of these certifications including R2, NAID AAA and e-Stewards. So look for these certifications while you are considering to select the right data destruction vendor for your organization.
4. Performs Comprehensive & Permanent Data Destruction
An expert ITAD vendor ensures that your data is wiped or destroyed permanently without any scope of recovery even in a laboratory setting. ITADs generally either destroy data through overwriting to make the device available for reuse or completely destroy the device using a commercial shredder or other physical destruction methods. For wiping the device for reuse purposes, these ITADs use a professional data wiping software such as BitRaser that guarantees secure and permanent data sanitization. Leading ITADs offer both onsite and offsite erasure of data according to your convenience. These ITADs follow a streamlined process to ensure that every detail of your device is recorded when it is transported to different facility so that you have complete details with secure chain of custody before destruction. They securely then erase the device and provide erasure report and certification.
5. Handles Environmental Concerns Responsibly
Discarded e-waste is one of the fastest growing environmental and public health threats the world is witnessing today. According to a joint report by World Economic Forum and United Nations, the world produced over 50 million tons of e-waste in the year 2019 alone. Most of these e-waste are dumped in the landfills and aquatic ecosystem making it a health hazard for not just humans alone but innocent organisms and creatures living in the land and aquatic bodies. These e-waste contain harmful chemicals and radiations and as a responsible organization, you would not want to either be a part of this mess or be responsible in adding to the scourge of e-waste. Selecting a truly certified ITAD, you are rest assured that your discarded IT assets are either repurposed or recycled responsibly.
To Conclude:
Selection of an ITAD specialist is crucial when your vital storage devices and customer data are at stake. By ensuring that your appointed vendor performs secure data destruction complying with global standards and regulations, you can have peace of mind that your data is in safe hands. By incorporating ‘the top 5 reasons’ in your ITAD strategy, you will ensure that your selected ITAD specialist is committed to data security, compliance and sustainability. Are you looking for a certified ITAD? Get in touch with the BitRaser team today!
Also, if you are looking for a secure, professional and certified data erasure,software that provides fail-safe data protection by assuring that your sensitive data is destructed beyond recovery, do get in touch with our technical team at sales@bitraser.com.
