How to Securely Manage an Enterprise’s Old It Assets?
Throughout their lives, businesses will go through a large quantity of various IT assets. This IT equipment is essential for businesses in their operations but naturally cannot last forever. IT equipment efficiently facilitates daily operations and helps businesses gain and maintain a strategic advantage over the competition.
It is hence natural that IT asset management has become an area of crucial importance. Most organizations have dedicated departments responsible for tracking and maintaining these IT assets when they’re in use. However, most do not have a plan for IT asset disposal.
Obviously, recycling IT assets is just as important as managing them while they’re in use. This is because old IT assets contain any sensitive data and represent hidden value that businesses lose when they dispose of them incorrectly. Never mind the fact that incorrect IT asset disposal is environmentally irresponsible.
But what does secure IT asset disposal look like, and why is it important? Let’s take a look!
Why is Secure IT Asset Disposal Important?
There are several reasons why organizations should have a secure IT disposition plan. They are as follows:
Reduce Security Risks
Many of the IT assets in the organization contain lots of sensitive data related to the company’s operations. While the asset is in use, this isn’t a huge concern. However, trouble arises if the asset is no longer in use.
When it’s not in use, it receives far less care and attention. The trouble is compounded if it is incorrectly disposed of and the data gets into the wrong hands. Malevolent parties can use this data against the company and cause potentially serious financial and reputation damage.
Reduce Environmental Impact
IT asset disposal must be conducted in a secure and environmentally responsible manner. Very few businesses take the time out to properly recycle their IT assets once they’re discarded. This means that a lot of equipment ends up in landfills.
Not only does this present security risks, but it also increases the company’s environmental impact. This could land the organization in legal trouble for failing to comply with state and federal laws. Not only that, it may bring the organization into the public spotlight for all the wrong reasons.
There is a global e-waste management problem that the organization should not add to. Conversely, by implementing suitable IT asset disposal, your organization can showcase its responsible practices and earn public goodwill.
Characteristics of Secure IT Asset Disposal
Having gone through the risks, let’s look at what secure IT asset disposal looks like. Here are a few things to consider:
Before the process begins, you should conduct an organization-wide audit of all the IT assets that are present in the organization. Then you should filter out those that are no longer in use. There should be a tracking system in a place that labels and tracks each IT asset as it goes through the various stages of disposal.
You should then separate items that will need to be destroyed, refurbished, and deconstructed for parts. Companies like CompuCycle can save your team time and will use Department of Defense standards to wipe or destroy any of the sensitive data relating to the organization. The same must be done for items that will be deconstructed.
CompuCycle’s Secure IT Disposal
When it comes to IT asset recycling companies, CompuCycle is one of the best. We offer several features that no other provider in the US can offer. One of our crowning achievements is the establishment of a state-of-the-art processing plant that can manage all your IT asset disposal needs. CompuCycle is proud to be the exclusive electronics recycling company in Texas, providing shredding of scrap electronics into raw materials and separating the shredded electronics into steel, aluminum, copper, plastics, and circuit boards for direct shipment to smelters, mills, and refineries. These capabilities provide our customers assurance that when the product is sent to CompuCycle, it is either refurbished for reuse and all scrap electronics are processed by CompuCycle to their end of life.
Here is what we can offer:
- White glove services whereby we offer secure pickup of assets from your organization or
- Client drop-off to our secure facility.
- Data Destruction processes are followed by the Department of Defense.
- Tracking of each item and detailed reports available for each on the client portal.
- Secure chain of custody that ensures that your IT assets do not fall into the wrong hands.
This is only a hint of all our services, to learn more go through our services.
