5 Best Practices Good Recycling Companies Adhere to
If the thought of how best to retire IT assets these days has occurred to you, you are not alone. The news has been awash with large companies suffering security breaches over the past couple of years, while the number of companies that have been slapped hard with civil and criminal penalties – with subsequent executive fines (and jail time too) – hasn’t gone unnoticed either. Alarming times we live in.
With technological advancements happening at bedazzling rates, companies are now having to deal with a more involving process when it comes to disposal of computers and other tech equipment.
Nonetheless, the smart ones are finding credible, qualified IT asset disposal and recycling companies to manage this thorny issue on their behalf.
Technology disposal is a sensitive affair that needs to be confronted in a safe and ecologically responsible fashion. Following are five best practices every e-waste disposal company should be able to offer its clientele.
Data Destruction
The fact that you are done with your storage drive and deleted the data in it doesn’t mean the data is gone. There is a lot more to hard drive recycling which is why it pays to have experts do the sanitization for you. Data that has not been deleted or cleaned properly can easily be restored, even by a novice.
That aside, you also face legal ramifications if you fail to properly dispose of your data and drives. Assume, for instance, some hard drives you had retired fell into malicious hands which resulted in a data breach, putting your customers’ personal information at risk. You would have to face the law, and worse, your reputation could go up in smoke.
Equipment Remarketing
IT assets such as computers, servers, networking equipment and more with less than 3-4 years of service in them have resale value. A liquidator should be able to recoup part of that value for you, and this could be through the many remarketing channels that are open to them.
There are many ways you can get value from your old assets really. Could be reselling, could be selling to members of staff, online auctions, making donations to foundations or schools, just to mention a handful.
Equipment Recycling
All recycled IT assets should have an accompanying CEED (Certificate of Electronic Equipment Destruction). This certifies that your company followed the right procedure which can save you potential penalties in future.
Compliance Reporting
These days, there are myriad government bodies tasked with the responsibility of providing oversight with regard to asset disposal. They include PCI, HIPPA, FCC, SOX, FDA among others.
This is why detailed documentation by the asset disposal company is a must. It helps keep a thorough audit trail which can prove the stipulated laws and regulations were adhered to.
Policy and Program Development
If your company has no idea how to go about developing a compliant IT equipment disposal program, worry not. A reputable recycling center San Jose should be able to hold your hand as you wade through the murky waters.
If a disposal company cannot boast these best practices, you have no business with them.