Did you know that people across the world produce around 2.5 quintillion bytes of data each day? Well, it’s true, and your business likely stores a lot of data that you don’t even know exists. Combine that with the sensitive information that you keep about employees and clients, and you have a recipe for disaster in the event of a breach.
Engaging in secure data erasure strategies is critical when getting rid of information that you no longer need to store. But what exactly does data destruction entail? Read on for a quick but comprehensive guide to erasing data the right way.
What Is Secure Data Erasure?
Traditionally, data that is deleted from a hard drive is recoverable. Basic file deletion methods only remove software that points directly towards data disk sectors. Hackers and other unauthorized users can use common software to access this deleted data, which makes it susceptible to theft.
Secure data erasure is different because it makes the data unrecoverable. Specialized technologies allow experts to select data that they no longer need and overwrite it in a way that completely destroys it. It does this by overwriting the sensitive data with new random data (usually randomly distributed binary code).
It then verifies that the method of overwriting was successful and removes all data from the device’s hard drive. This ensures that you can shred or throw away the hard drive (or full device) without worrying about theft.
Why Is This Important to Enterprises?
The average data breach will cost a company around $4.24 million. Financial loss is a key reason that data theft is such an issue for businesses. By permanently destroying data, you lower the risk of devastating financial loss that could put you out of business (or at least greatly set you back).
Secure data erasure is also important because it helps you to comply with governmental and corporate regulations. Many industries have compliance laws such as HIPAA in the medical field. In these sectors, you could be subject to enormous fines and even be forced to shut down if noncompliant.
Other businesses may also have corporate policies that they must follow when erasing data. If you do not follow these policies, you may be subject to fines and lawsuits.
How Can You Permanently Destroy Data?
Luckily, data erasure software like Certus Software provides makes data security a simple process. This company offers the most advanced data destruction technology as well as broad hardware support. It is certified by NCSC and ADISA while meeting International Common Criteria.
All you need to do is purchase an erasure toolkit. This contains a HASP key for offline erasure and two USB sticks for erasing data on storage and mobile devices. All you need to do is plug in the appropriate USB stick and initiate the data destruction process.
Keep Your Business Secure and Protected
Now that you know the basics of secure data erasure, it’s time to get more tips on how to protect your sensitive business information. Check out the “tech” tab on our home page to learn more about the programs and security software that can keep you protected. You may also be interested in our search function if you’re looking for specific articles on data and information security.
