Hard Disc Drive Vs. Solid State Drive Destruction

THIS MONTH, LEGAL SHRED IS LOOKING AT THE BENEFITS OF HARD DRIVE SHREDDING AND WHY IT IS THE SAFEST, MOST SECURE WAY TO ENSURE THAT YOUR OLD AND OBSOLETE HARD DRIVES ARE RENDERED UNUSABLE.

Solid state drives are not the same as hard drives, and how they’re destroyed is based on how they’re engineered.

Solid state hard drives, or SSDs, are vastly different than traditional hard drives.  There are no moving parts inside an SSD.  Rather than using disks and read/write heads, SSDs use flash memory instead, which is basically computer chips that retain their information even when there is an absence of power.  This is important to know, especially when it comes time to destroy old data on an SSD.

SSDs are viewed as more durable simply because of their solid state design. Without moving parts, they can withstand higher extremes of shock, drop, and temperature.

Hard drives are a bit different; the “platter” inside the hard disk drive is coated with a magnetic media which records data in binary code.  SSDs work in the same way the storage on your smartphone or tablet works.  SSDs can be made smaller and can use less power than traditional hard drives.

When destroying HDDs and SSDs that are no longer needed, the differences in their technology must be taken into consideration.

Degaussing, yes or no?

Degaussing involves passing the magnetic media through a powerful magnetic field to rearrange the polarity of the particles, thus completely removing any likeness of the previously recorded data. A degausser is good if you want to completely erase all audio, video and data signals from the magnetic storage, but it will not work for SSDs simply because because SSDs do not contain erasable magnetic coatings.

So, how do you destroy an SSD?

Physically destroying the SSD by shredding it into small particles is the absolutely safest, most foolproof method for safe and secure disposal. The data bearing chips are broken into small pieces making the data unrecoverable. Shredding services can be either at your site or off-site, the former making it a convenient option for busy business and residential customers.

Shredding for SSD is the only true way to achieve peace of mind when disposing of this type of storage.

When in doubt, shred it to forget it!

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