An organization’s data destruction guidelines should require hard drives containing personal data to go through which of the following processes prior to being crushed?

An organization’s data destruction guidelines should require hard drives containing personal data to go through which of the following processes prior to being crushed?
A . Low-level formatting
B . Remote partitioning
C . Degaussing
D . Hammer strike

View Answer

Answer: C

Explanation:

Degaussing is a hard drive sanitation method that uses a powerful magnetic field to erase or destroy the data stored on a magnetic disk or tape. Degaussing should be used to sanitize hard drives containing personal data prior to being crushed, as it provides an additional layer of assurance that data has been permanently erased and cannot be recovered by any means. Degaussing also damages the drive itself, making it unusable for future storage. The other options are not effective or necessary hard drive sanitation methods prior to being crushed. Low-level formatting is a hard drive sanitation method that erases the data and the partition table on the drive, but it may leave some traces of data that can be recovered by forensic tools or software. Remote partitioning is a hard drive sanitation method that creates separate logical sections on the drive, but it does not erase or destroy the data on the drive. Hammer strike is a hard drive sanitation method that physically damages the drive by hitting it with a hammer, but it may not erase or destroy the data completely or prevent data recovery by advanced tools or techniques1, p. 93-94

Reference: 1: CDPSE Review Manual (Digital Version)