Certified data erasure: spotlessly clean hard drives with the official seal of approval
Credit card numbers, account details, business spreadsheets, designs, confidential memos – disused hard drives are a treasure trove of highly sensitive data. Many companies and Public Sector organisations are still very careless with their data. The issue of data security is often neglected, especially when IT systems have come to the end of their useful life. However, there is a consensus among experts that professional data erasure is now one of the basic tools of data security. CHG-MERIDIAN is the first company worldwide to offer a fully certified secure data erasure process.
The result: spotlessly clean hard drives that are in perfect condition.
The first step in this totally innovative data erasure process, which is currently unique in Europe, is for our specially trained staff to compile an on-site inventory of the equipment whose data is to be erased. The desktop computers and notebooks are then placed in sealed containers and boxes and transported to one of CHG-MERIDIAN's brokerage and logistics centres. This ensures that no sensitive data is lost in transit. The data erasure itself is a very time-consuming and highly complex procedure. The hard drives are repartitioned, reformatted and erased using specially developed software and then overwritten seven times. With seven write cycles, the procedure developed by CHG-MERIDIAN meets even the rigorous standards of Germany's Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) and the US Department of Defense (DoD).
The result is spotlessly clean but still fully functional hard drives that can be passed on to third parties without concern. The data cannot be reconstructed using currently available technology.
Part of the erasure process is seamless documentation – from the compilation of an equipment inventory at the client's premises to the final examination of the erased hard drives. In addition, all clients are given a detailed erasure report and written confirmation of the secure erasure of their data.
The process developed by CHG-MERIDIAN has been certified by TÜV Informationstechnik GmbH (TÜViT), Germany's safety standards authority.
