What primary process should a company implement before disposing of servers to ensure sensitive data is not accessible?

Sanitizing servers is the primary process that a company should implement before disposing of them to ensure sensitive data is not accessible. Data sanitization refers to the process of removing or destroying data on a storage device in such a way that it cannot be recovered. This process can include techniques like data wiping, degaussing, or physical destruction, depending on the level of security needed and the type of data being handled.

By properly sanitizing servers, a company mitigates the risk of data breaches and ensures compliance with various data protection regulations. Simply backing up the data or reformatting the hard drives may not adequately remove sensitive information, as backed-up data could potentially remain accessible, and reformatting can often be reversed with specialized tools. While physical destruction of servers is a very secure method of data protection, it is considered a more extreme measure and is typically only necessary when dealing with highly sensitive information or when the hardware is at the end of its life cycle. Sanitization strikes a balance between maintaining environmental responsibility by allowing for hardware reuse while still protecting sensitive data.