Data disposal does not require a big hammer says disposal firm

TAKING A LARGE MALLET to your old computer to destroy any sensitive data on it before ridding yourself of it for a brand new one, may not be the most effective or environmentally friendly approach.

A firm called Tier 1 reckons it has a far better way of disposing of tech waste, which even occasionally generates a bit of cash for the company shifting its old machines.

The firm decries what it calls the “Luddite retort of, ‘Smash it up’” to solve the problem of what to do with data-packed machines at the end of their lifespans, noting that smashing the hard drive to smithereens, shoving the remnants into a hole in the ground or paying someone else to do so for you, is not really the most helpful, or green method available.

What Tier 1 recommends instead, is that companies hand over their hard drive to its IT disposal team who properly wipe it of all data, apparently to INFSOC standards of accreditation, and then refurbish the blank machine for either resale or even donation to a charity.

In fact, Eurocrats are so impressed with this idea, they even bestowed the lofty title of first place in the Market Leadership category at the 2008 European Green IT awards on Tier 1.

Tier 1 Asset Management’s Jon Selby noted gravely that IT and data disposal is not a DIY project. "When a Government or corporate organisation does not properly sanitise existing data storage devices, they expose themselves to a whole host of legal, public relations and business repercussions should any information be lost.” Doesn’t seem to bother the British Government though, they do it all the time.

Selby promises his firm would re-use end-of-life equipment and try to get revenue for the recycling company wherever possible. He notes that in 2007, 73 per cent of the equipment Tier 1 handled was re-used in its original form, and says he hopes this percentage would be higher still in 2008.

Selby also said he was willing to give companies yet another good reason for choosing to dispose of their data-filled PCs properly rather than through wanton, manic destruction, offering the service for free to 85 per cent of clients. He didn’t specify which 15 per cent would still have to pay, however.

This could mean that with rising oil and food prices as well as the burgeoning recession, the UK government doesn’t have enough cash in its coffers to pay Tier 1 for its sensitive data to be safely wiped and therefore continues to lose it regularly on trains. µ