Organisations are coming under intense scrutiny and regulation when it comes to data. Unfortunately, businesses have not set policies and processes for data storage and destruction. It becomes easier for cybercriminals to exploit the loopholes. It is why malware attacks on businesses are increasing each year.
Confident customer and organisational data are leaked to the public or sold on the dark web. Businesses suffer a loss of reputation and fines from the regulators. There are cases where customers have brought class-action lawsuits against the company for failure to protect their information and won.
Governments worldwide are asking companies to be more careful regarding how they handle private data. They are calling for comprehensive data management policies. A key component of such a policy is data destruction.
What is Data Destruction?
It is a term that refers to the destruction of data irrespective of whether it is in hardcopy or electronic documents. Once the process is complete, anyone who comes in possession of the data must not be able to retrieve it. If they can retrieve the data, the data destruction process has flaws.
Data Destruction and the Law
You might be wondering why you need data destruction services? The primary reason is regulatory compliance. Governments worldwide are taking strict measures against businesses that fail to protect data. Therefore, if you wish to avoid hefty fines and lawsuits, you need to dispose of the data securely.
Certificate of Data Destruction
It is a certificate that details what data has been destroyed and the method of destruction. As a business, this certificate can protect you against liability. For example, when you outsource data destruction services to a third party, you shift the risk from your business to them. If the data destruction company does not destroy the data and someone retrieves it, your business can escape liability. Therefore, it is imperative that you hire a credible data destruction company.
Types of Data Destruction
There are three common types of data destruction:
On-site Shredding
It is where a third party shreds all physical data without ever taking it out of the business premises. The benefit is that your representative can monitor the entire process. The downside is that the shredding capacity is considerably reduced. The reason is that the shredding company cannot utilise their industrial shredders.
Off-site Shredding
It is where the data destruction company removes all the physical data from your offices and takes it to their premises. It is one of the best options because it saves business time and space. An organisation does not need to dedicate a space for the destruction process. Instead, the destruction company performs all the destruction work at their location. The shredding company can easily destroy hundreds of tonnes of data per day using the industrial-grade shredders installed at their premises.
Hard Drive Destruction
It applies to electronic data. Physically destroying data may not protect against data recovery. Also, physical destruction will only add to the environmental woes. Instead, data destruction companies use a combination of tools to wipe the hard discs, making it impossible to recover any data.
Conclusion
A comprehensive data destruction process is a must-have nowadays. Otherwise, your business is taking on unnecessary risk. If the data gets retrieved, lawsuits, reputational damage, and fines cannot be avoided. Therefore, avail of the services of a repeatable and qualified data destruction company.
