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Secure Disposal of Paper and Electronic Media

Securely Disposing of Old Data

All information has a lifecycle, and when data reaches the end of its useful life we often have the need to dispose of it in some manner. It’s important to get rid of old data in a secure way, whether the data is stored on paper or electronic media. Below are the proper disposal methods for data stored on different types of media:

  • Paper: Shred with a cross-cut shredder, or place in a locked shredding bin.
  • CDs/DVDs/Floppy Disks: Many shredders can also destroy CDs/DVDs and floppy disks. 
  • Flash Drives/Hard Drives/SD Cards: These items can be securely erased using special software that overwrites all of the data stored on them. They can also be physically destroyed using special shredding equipment. 
  • Backup Tapes and Printer Ribbons: Backup tapes and printer ribbon can be destroyed using special shredding equipment. 

Emory Shredding Services, a division of Campus Services, can provide secure shredding for all of the items listed above. For more information, please visit Emory Shredding Service’s website or call 404-712-8921.

Data Retention Requirements

Before deleting or destroying old data, make sure that you’re not legally or contractually obligated to keep it for a specific period of time. Please visit Emory’s Records Management website for more information about record retention schedules.

Do you have paper of electronic media that you need to dispose of?

The IT Information Security Office and Emory Shredding Services are sponsoring two “Data Destruction Day” events on October 2nd and 4th, 2012. Members of the Emory community who have paper or electronic media that they need to dispose of can bring them to the following locations on those dates. Emory Shredding Services will collect the media and dispose of them in a secure manner.

  • October 2nd 7AM – Noon: West side of the Woodruff PE Center (the side that faces the Peavine parking deck)
  • October 2nd 1PM – 5PM: Briarcliff Campus (Building A Lobby)
  • October 4th 8AM – Noon: Behind the Oxford College Gymnasium

The following types of media will be accepted:

  • Hard Drives (not the entire computer)
  • Backup tapes
  • Mixed media (CDs,DVDs, tape, VHS, film, fiche)
  • Flash drives
  • Paper