Degauss
Or demagnetizing. Using a device that generates a strong electromagnetic field to wipe data on a drive. This process generally renders the device unusable.
Destroying
Rendering media unusable. Destruction techniques include but are not limited to disintegration, incineration, pulverizing, shredding and melting. This is a common sanitization method for single-write storage media such as a CD or DVD for which other sanitization methods would be ineffective. This is also a common practice when permanently discarding hard drives.
Disk wipe
A process that overwrites the entire hard drive with data (zeros or random characters) thus rendering it unreadable.
Disposal
Discarding media with no other sanitization considerations. For example discarding paper in a recycling container, deleting electronic documents using standard file deletion methods and discarding electronic storage media in a standard trash receptacle.
Electronic storage media
Any electronic device that can be used to store data. This includes but is not limited to internal and external hard drives, CDs, DVDs, Floppy Disks, USB drives, ZIP disks, magnetic tapes and SD cards.
Non-public information
Any information that is classified as Private or Restricted according to the Data Classification Policy.
Reformat
A procedure that erases the operating system plus all files on a hard drive. Files may be retrievable so this method is not acceptable for sensitive data.
Created: Oct. 2011