Xperien is now able to professionally erase data on retired IT assets in compliance with the Protection of Personal Information Act (PoPIA). It offers safe and secure data destruction services and all its data destruction methods are accompanied by certificates that will be required for an audit trail.

It is often assumed that once data has been marked for disposal, it no longer requires much attention. However, it is essential for data security and the protection of personal, proprietary and confidential information that data is permanently destroyed, deleted or erased from devices.

Xperien senior business development manager Bridgette Vermaak says data at end-of-life has now become a huge challenge for most companies, especially with uncontrolled data growth that has resulted in new corporate policies for data storage and retention. “This is largely as a result of new global legislations and regulations.”

"Our technicians are able to perform onsite destruction of hard drives and devices using physical destruction. Our mobile shredders are able to handle 300 hard drives or cell phones daily," she explains.

Degaussing is a process that uses a magnetic charge to eliminate data and it also destroys other components of the hard disk drive – ensuring double protection. Degaussed drives can then be recycled.

"For offsite hard drive destruction we use physical shredding to destroy large quantities of hard drives and devices. It destroys all types of data tape media, mobile phones, libraries and CD’s by shredding them into tiny pieces. This method offers high security, speed and cost effectiveness," she adds.

Xperien provides secure lockable strongboxes that can be used to collect hard drives, mobile phones and other devices prior to arrival onsite. These can be used for a destruction or a collection for offsite destruction.

To recover value from hard drives and devices with SSD data storage, mainly cell phones and USB sticks, Xperien uses software erasure which eliminates data without physically destroying the asset’s value.

DestroyData software, based on Secure Erase, performs advance digital data elimination that allows the hard disk drive to be reused, making this method the most environmentally compliant.

These software solutions offer the best audit trails on the market, they are able to capture additional inventory criteria and produce individual disposal certificates for hard disk drives. Software erasure is the costliest option because it is time consuming, taking up to 2 hours for a 320GB hard disk drive. There are also license fees payable for each disposal certificate.

However, it is usually the preferred option for newer equipment where the charges can be recovered for the residual value in the IT equipment. The secure erase standard is recognised by most of the above mentioned standards but not all defence agencies standards.

"DestroyData software offers a secure, efficient solution to assist customers in the prevention of data loss; safeguarding your company’s integrity," she explains.

DestroyData provides a simple software solution to digitally erase all types of hard disk drive.  The solution provides a fast, efficient process that is user friendly and generates reports and audit trails for the end user. 

Vermaak says Xperien has chosen destroyData software due to its ability to provide an erasure report, support multiple device platforms and erase multiple devices at one time. "Certified data erasure is a practical choice for businesses who want to secure their data without a time consuming manual process."

A Certificate of Data Destruction is an assurance that every possible measure was taken to safely and securely eradicate and destroy all data in compliance with Government and industry regulations.

"By conforming to technology standards and UK government certifications, this software – together with our experienced team – are able to provide you with peace of mind. 

In saying so, we guarantee no data will be left behind prior to reassignment, resale or retirement of the device," she concludes.

For more information contact Xperien on (011) 462-8806 or email bridgette@xperien.co.za