Educause Security Discussion mailing list archives

Re: Physical HDD destruction


From: Charlie Derr <cderr () SIMONS-ROCK EDU>
Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2012 14:25:14 -0400

On 03/20/2012 02:17 PM, Matt Marmet wrote:
Good day Everyone,

Here at Armstrong, we have a couple hundred hard drives that we have to physically disable/destroy. We also have about
200 hard drives per year that our desktop support staff recover from old machines that need to be destroyed as well. We
have seen some of the hydraulic electric presses that are enclosed as well as manual presses that are made for this type
of work. What are other institutions using to destroy HDDs securely and safely?

Regards,

Matt

Hi Matt,

We have a technician who enjoys disassembling them (while waiting for software to load, etc...). Physically mangling the platters (sometimes they shatter; watch out!) seems sufficient and then we just dispose of the trash. And we get the benefit of a bunch of cool magnets to play with (some of them are strong enough to be almost dangerous) at the end of the process. Our volume is in the dozens, not hundreds, but all in all, it didn't really take him that long to work through a rather large box of them last year.

     be well,
          ~c



---
Matt Marmet
Director of IT Security, CISO
Armstrong Atlantic State University
11935 Abercorn Street
Savannah, GA 31419
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Cell: (912) 414-0684 <tel:%28912%29%20414-0684>

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