One important thing to remember when getting rid of a computer is that your hard drive could be filled with sensitive data, especially if you are a business. Yes, you may have deleted that file or information but it is still on your hard drive waiting to be overwritten. This is why it is very important that when you get rid of your old computer that you do a hard drive destruction. This is the only way to ensure that no one gets hold of sensitive data. To do this there are many different methods in which it can be done. You can do the destruction part yourself but it is best to have a professional do it to ensure that it is done correctly and all sensitive data is completely removed. Make sure that the professional company that you choose has been in business for several years and has a good reputation for doing these jobs. If you choose to do it yourself, here are some methods that you can use.
Hammer the hard drive
This is the most direct and fast way of destroying the equipment. Put it on a surface that can take you beating the hardware part with a hammer and is also easy to clean. Make sure that you are wearing safety gloves and goggles. When hammering this piece of computer hardware be sure that you are the only one in the area as there could be flying bits of metal and glass. Once it is destroyed carefully get rid of the rest. You can take the parts to any place that recycles electronics. Do not put them in the trash to be taken to the landfill
Using hardware tools
One-way you can do hard drive destruction is to rent a sandblaster. Take your hard drive to the driveway or other hard surface and start blasting away the mirror finish. When you do this, you are removing the layer of material that stores the data.
You can also use an angle cutter, which is similar to a saw. Fasten the platter of the hard drive -to an appropriate surface using "C" clamps. Put on your safety goggles and gloves because when you use this hardware tool it makes sparks that fly. You will have to make several cuts in order to do appropriate destruction.
You can also use a drill but you will need a strong drill bit to accomplish this. When using this method you should also wear safety gloves and goggles. Drill several holes in your hard disk platter in several different spots to guarantee that you can not recover the data.
Yes, you can do it yourself but having a company that specializes in hard drive destruction is a safer alternative.