Erasing Your Hard Drive: Disk Scrubbing

Introduction

Disk scrubbing is a process in which a hard drive is overwritten with useless data (typically a single number) before the hard drive is disposed of. State Law requires that University-owned hard disks and similar devices be scrubbed of data before being disposed of and is an increasingly good idea for privately owned computers.

This document will explain the basics of disk scrubbing and provides links to current university policies and frequently asked questions.

Why scrub your disks?

In short, you should scrub your disks before disposal to prevent unauthorized data recovery. Obviously Social Security numbers or other personal information should be thoroughly removed before a computer is scrapped, but it is important for protecting individual privacy to remove any data before sending drives or computers to University surplus.

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in the United States, and personal information is now worth money to the right people. Social security numbers, names and addresses, and financial information can all be used to make purchases in your name and can easily be recovered from discarded hard drives. In 2007, almost 6,000 students at Loyola University - Chicago were placed at risk of identity theft due to a hard drive which was discarded without being properly sanitized (see here for more information).

More information

Disk Scrubbing and the Data Security on State Computers Act - Contains current university policy, disk scrubbing instructions, and hardware disposal labels.

Disk Scrubbing FAQ - Contains answers to frequently asked questions.

OBFS Policy Manual Disposal of State-Owned Equipment
OBFS Policy Manual Elimination of Data

The new policy on the Disposal of Digital Media has been approved but not yet published in the Campus Administrative Manual. The policy has been placed online temporarily.