IT Asset Disposition Services
IT Asset Disposition (ITAD)
Potomac eCycle works with companies large and small, government agencies, and municipalities to maximize revenue from their aging electronics and to support their ESG policies through its safe, secure, and documented recycling process. Our years of experience have helped us develop a process that allows customers to safely and securely repurpose or responsibly recycle their end-of-life electronic assets.
To do this we use the following steps.
Project Evaluation: Our team has extensive experience and can quickly understand the scope of your project, the value of your assets, your data destruction requirements, and your ESG reporting goals.
Secure Data Destruction: Our shred truck is capable of shredding over 10k hard drives per day at your location. This will give you the peace of mind that your data is eliminated before it ever leaves your premises.
Logistics: Logistics is not just about trucking. It’s about having experienced project managers that can handle any issue that pops up during the project. Special services include white glove removal and shipment of assets to your company’s new location, large UPS and generator removal, and complete colocation cage restoration.
Revenue Sharing: Assets that have residual value can be remarketed on your behalf. Potomac eCycle has a team of dedicated technicians who can fully test, refurbish, and wipe your assets clean of data. You’ll receive monthly reporting on each asset sold, the marketplace and shipping fees and your portion of the revenue. If you already have a detailed list of your assets and you don’t want to wait, we can also offer an outright purchase.
Because of the complications involved in the ITAD process, the preferred solution to the disposing of obsolete IT assets is to use the services of a specialist ITAD services company, such as Potomac eCycle. We can handle any volume of equipment from a few laptops to a complete company update involving hundreds of machines, or the clearance of a data center. We can carry out the data destruction on-site or in their purpose-built facility. We also provide a certificate of destruction, together with a complete chain-of-custody account, if required.
Most medium-sized and large organizations will have a defined policy and standard operating procedure for the disposal of their old equipment. That procedure will include instructions for the oversight of the outsourcing of the disposal and destruction of old technology equipment.
When considering the best ITAD solution there are three primary issues to take into account:
- The security of the process, including data destruction
- The maximization of any value to be realized
- Compliance with any security regulations
There is also the issue of minimizing the environmental impact of the disposal process.
ITAD Services Company
Certification Of Data Destruction
- Removal of all corporate and personal identification
- Erasure and shredding of the hard drives
- Documentation of the chain-of-custody
- Certification of the completion of the data destruction process
These steps ensure that sensitive, confidential information, whether personal or corporate, is adequately protected and prevented from passing into the wrong hands. With concerns about identity theft and industrial espionage, it is critically important that all possible precautions are taken to eliminate the possibility of the misuse of data.
Effective Electronics Recycling
A professional ITAD services company will ensure that it always works in compliance with all relevant regulations, at all levels, and that all of its employees work in accordance with industry best practices.
These include:
- Working within R2/RIOS procedures
- Tracking equipment by serial numbers and tags
- Reconciling inventory
- Monitoring downstream processors of hazardous waste
- Minimizing waste going into landfills
R2/RIOS Standards And Compliance
RIOS stands for the Recycling Industry Operating Standard. This standard is developed by REMA, formerly ISRI. It is derived from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), a body made up of representatives from various national standards organizations to promote worldwide standards. RIOS standards primarily cover quality and environmental management.
The electronics industry has developed its own certification for the responsible disposal of electronic waste, including management oversight and best data destruction practices. Companies meeting or exceeding these standards are referred to as R2-certified.
REMA (Recycled Materials Association) combines the RIOS and R2 to offer an R2/RIOS certification, the highest qualification in the electronics recycling industry. This is recognized by various bodies including the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency).
Potomac eCycle is R2/RIOS-certified.
How Important Is ITAD In Data Security?
The last few years have seen an escalation in data breaches with companies such as Equifax, Dunkin’ Donuts, Advent Health, and Dow Jones reporting that their systems had been compromised. In most cases, these attacks were on live systems but the principle of securing sensitive data applies equally to end-of-life electronic equipment and its disposal process.
When any computer equipment has to be decommissioned, the security of any data must be assured. It is not sufficient to wipe the disks with software programs, or even to reformat the drives: in both of those situations the data can be rebuilt and recovered, even if the space has been overwritten numerous times with random data. For these reasons, the ITAD process should be viewed from the point of view of data security first and foremost.
The R2/RIOS certification provides assurance that the data destruction will be carried out professionally and in accordance with industry best practices.
