How Hosting Providers Destroy Your Data

VIDEO – On the corporate blog of web hosting provider Liquid Web, we found a nice video and some explanation on how the company destroys hardware drives and deletes the customer data on it – after the server equipment of Liquid Web is decommissioned.

Liquid Web takes decommissioned servers through a careful process of review, testing, and destruction in order to protect its customers’ data. When a server is decommissioned by Liquid Web, a dedicated Reclamations Team first delivers it to a testing lab. There, the server is completely dismantled and each individual part is put through a rigorous testing procedure.

Donation of outdated servers

Then, data is wiped off the drive and they thoroughly check it for issues. Drives that have been emptied and pass the testing procedures are often reused. If hardware drives demonstrate any problems or when they are near the end of their lifespan, the Reclamations Team will introduce the drives to a very special tool: the Drive Puncher. Through the use of a Drive Puncher, Liquid Web can guarantee customers that any hard drive on its way to the shredder is first destroyed, eliminating the possibility that a customer’s data could be accessed.

The drives are then sorted and shipped to a local facility where they are finally shredded into pieces. After the shredding, the metal is separated and recycled into a number of useful materials. Liquid Web also donates many old and outdated servers to various local entities in need of computers, such as schools or non-profits. [youtube_sc url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMhyOMTxBPE” title=”hosting-providers-data-drives” modestbranding=”1″ autohide=”1″ fs=”1″ rel=”0″ showinfo=”0″ embedcode=”old” enablejsapi=”1″]

Liquid Web Inc. is a privately held managed web hosting provider founded in 1997, with its headquarters and three wholly owned data center facilities located in Lansing, Michigan. The company has over 20,000 clients served in over 120 countries. Liquid Web currently employs more than 300 Support engineers with specialties in technical support, server setup, networking, security and more.