{"id":7895,"date":"2021-02-18T09:58:54","date_gmt":"2021-02-18T14:58:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.itadsummit.com\/?page_id=7895"},"modified":"2021-02-18T09:58:54","modified_gmt":"2021-02-18T14:58:54","slug":"itad-blog-3-hard-drive-myths-debunked","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.itadsummit.com\/index.php\/itad-blog-3-hard-drive-myths-debunked\/","title":{"rendered":"ITAD Blog:  3 Hard Drive Myths Debunked"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>\n\t\tITAD Blog\n\t<\/h1>\n<h6>\n\t\t3 Hard Drive Myths Debunked\n\t<\/h6>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.itadsummit.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/bb-plugin\/cache\/BlueHardDrive-circle.jpg\" alt=\"BlueHardDrive\" itemprop=\"image\"  \/>\n\t<h1>ITAD Blog<\/h1>\n<h3><strong>3 HARD DRIVE MYTHS DEBUNKED<\/strong><\/h3>\n\t<p>If you\u2019ve ever searched the internet for \u201chow to wipe a hard drive,\u201d it\u2019s likely you\u2019ve come across at least a few hard drive myths that make it seem easy to destroy personal data from your living room.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s so many out there, it\u2019s hard to keep track of which ones are legit and which ones are just plain false. Here are three of the most common hard drive myths and explanations as to why they are wrong.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>#1: Using Household\u00a0Magnets to Destroy Hard Drive Data<\/h2>\n<p>Probably the most wide-spread rumor about hard drive data destruction is that using a magnet will frazzle the data to make it unreadable. Now, this statement would be true if you were trying to wipe a\u00a0floppy disk, but a magnet strong enough to wipe a hard drive would be strong enough to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/adriankingsleyhughes\/2012\/11\/28\/can-a-magnet-destroy-a-pc\/#4a5aff5e7de0\">cut your finger off<\/a>\u00a0should it get stuck between the magnet and the surface you are attaching it to.<\/p>\n<h2>#2:\u00a0Melt Your Hard Drive to Destroy Data<\/h2>\n<p>The advice on this one ranges from using a blow torch to toasting it in the microwave (spoiler alert: hard drives contain metal\u2013 this does not end well). Truth is, melting\u00a0your hard drive is not a legitimate\u00a0method of destruction. For starters,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.semshred.com\/contentmgr\/showdetails.php\/id\/2480\">\u00a0this method is unsafe and definitely not eco-friendly.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>A melted hard drive releases toxins within the hard drive into the air, and upon disposal, these toxins will get into the landfills then end up in, harming the soil and possibly the water streams. Not to mention, you will end up breathing these chemicals in, and could end up with serious injury.<\/p>\n<h2>#3: Wipe\u00a0Hard Drive Data Before Destruction<\/h2>\n<p>Although this method does work when employed properly, a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.scmagazine.com\/recycled-hard-drives-rich-with-residual-data-study\/article\/529316\/\">recent study found<\/a>\u00a0that not all hard drive wipes are as thorough as promised. After purchasing over 200 used hard drives, researchers were able to uncover residual data on over 78%.<\/p>\n<p>Their conclusion?\u00a0<em>Not all resellers are taking the necessary precautions to wipe data completely clean before reselling used electronics to the next user.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Author: R3 Recycling<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p class=\"post-excerpt\" class=\"post-excerpt\">ITAD Blog 3 Hard Drive Myths Debunked ITAD Blog 3 HARD DRIVE&hellip;<\/p>\n<div class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.itadsummit.com\/index.php\/itad-blog-3-hard-drive-myths-debunked\/\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;ITAD Blog:  3 Hard Drive Myths Debunked&#8221;<\/span>&hellip;<\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.itadsummit.com\/index.php\/itad-blog-3-hard-drive-myths-debunked\/\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> \"ITAD Blog:  3 Hard Drive Myths Debunked\"<\/span>&hellip;<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-7895","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","entry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.6 - 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