Xperien CEO Wale Arewa |
Old
hard drives and backup tapes are a major security threat for any
business, they store a massive amount of confidential data that can
easily be compromised. Regardless whether the drives or tapes are
outdated or inoperable, this data is always accessible and needs to be
destroyed professionally.
Stolen
data can permanently damage a company's reputation, not to mention the
creating a whirlwind of legal and financial problems. Some businesses
never fully recover from a corporate data breach because of the
punishing costs and destruction of the brand.
Every
business needs to replace computers from time to time and even more
frequently today, as newer technology makes them obsolete. This results
in heaps of old computers equipment gathering dust in a storage room.
Businesses aren’t always sure what to do with this redundant equipment,
but they do know they cannot just throw it out.
One
hard drive can contain hundreds of thousands of files and when a file
is “deleted”, the information actually remains on the drive. This
includes “deleted” e-mail messages and records of all online activity.
Formatting
or overwriting will not even be enough to prevent confidential,
proprietary and sensitive data from being recovered by data thieves
using the right techniques and equipment.
IT
Asset Disposal (ITAD) specialist Xperien warns that deleting files from
a device doesn’t completely obliterate the data. Identity thieves can
extract information from a tape or hard drive even after it has been
formatted, the data remains on the drive or tape.
Although
hospitals, financial services, banks and government are subject to
higher standards of confidentiality, every business has information that
needs to be protected. Proper media destruction helps keep company
information safe.
Xperien
CEO Wale Arewa says physical destruction of old devices is the best way
to reduce a company’s data breach exposure. "There is also a legal
requirement that needs to be considered, by destroying your hard drives
and tapes helps keep your business compliant with Protection of Personal
Information Act 2013 (PoPI) and the European Union’s General Data
Protection Regulation (GDPR)."
In
addition to this, business leaders should not overlook the cost of
storing old backup media. Office space comes at a premium, by storing
outdated computers and storage media means less space for
revenue-generating activities.
Arewa
says businesses must incorporate regular tape and hard drive
destruction into their data security plan to maximise profitability. "By
destroying old hard drives and backup tapes professionally and
securely, helps ensure total information privacy for your customers and
your business. You work hard to gain the trust of your customers and
wouldn’t want to throw it away by compromising their data."
There
is more to information security than choosing the right destruction
equipment. What happens to old IT equipment prior to destruction is just
as important, one needs to keep it in a secure location or it could be
long gone before destruction.
Tweet us @GoXtraNews #GoXtraNews or contact our editor Buchule Raba editor@goxtranews.com to send us your stories or request interviews.
Tweet us @GoXtraNews #GoXtraNews or contact our editor Buchule Raba editor@goxtranews.com to send us your stories or request interviews.
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