Understanding the importance of NAID AAA Certification in the data destruction process is imperative for VARS and ITADs who are subcontracting any type of erasure, degaussing or shredding service. Understanding prioritizing value vs price as important for any company that is requesting data destruction as part of their life cycle asset management.
Only your customer can answer these deep questions about their data destruction process:
- Are we comfortable with data-handling personnel on our premises who may not be vetted, bonded and gone through a background check?
- What is the publicity risk or potential brand damage if there is a data breach?
- For our industry, is there a standard of security that we must abide by?
- Who will stand with us if there’s a problem?
- Is there accountability in the data destruction process from end to end?
- Do we need certification of destruction for our records? More than that?
- For enterprise companies, is there a benefit to having a single source supplier with consistent processes no matter where the destruction process is located?
- Are we ready to jump in and manage the project if there’s a problem, slip up or poor planning?
- Is level of cost or secure protection the most important factor?
- Do we know what we’re doing?
Evaluating and quantifying risk is just the first step. Calculating the cost of a data breach is another. If either of those are on the line, protecting data is a nominal cost and NAID AAA certification for data destruction is a must.
Is NAID Certification required for data destruction vendors?
NAID AAA certification is the highest standard available for data destruction. It is an optional credential — because, yes, anyone can say that they’re in the data destruction business.
Once a data destruction provider goes through the robust and rigorous NAID training and certification process, they’re subject to detailed and unannounced third-party audits to ensure compliance and that every aspect of the certified process is being followed.
The benefits of NAID Certification
- Defined processes and accountability
- Chain of custody plans
- Certification of destruction
- Secure handling of equipment and data by drug-tested, bonded, uniformed employees
- Compliance with all data protection regulations (by location, by industry, by company policy
- Qualifies as the service provider Risk Assessment as required under the HIPAA Security Rule
- Qualifies as the required vendor selection due diligence required by all data protection regulations
- Meets EU General Data Protection Regulation requirements
- High coverage on insurance and liability
- Expertise specific to this industry (not a side job)
What NAID AAA certification means
It means everything. With a NAID AAA certified data destruction partner, there’s a robust standard for security, processes, employment and chain of custody that has been developed and refined by thousands of projects. It means that your demands for reassurance that data isn’t going to come back and bite you are met. It means that you’ll have a partner who cares more about securing your data than you do. Above all, it means that you do not have to risk exposure of your confidential corporate or customer information because you don’t know who is doing your data destruction work and how they are doing it.
Let’s face it, anyone with a hammer can destroy a hard drive. If you want a partner (or vendor) that can stand up to the highest scrutiny of documents, processes and employees, and your customer’s demands, your data destruction provider must be NAID AAA certified.
The Guardian difference: NAID AAA certification and more
At Guardian Data Destruction, we adhere to the NAID certification processes because we know that it supports a level of industry accountability. Glenn Laga, Guardian founder and President, served on the NAID Board of Directors for two terms and is a frequent trainer and speaker at industry events. Additionally, Guardian Data Destruction uses NIST-approved equipment, follows NSA guidelines, and uses secure wipe software (Blanco, White Canyon, Kill Disk, EPS and more) that meets any requested security protocols.
When it comes to understanding data destruction value versus price, there are only two questions you need to know. Can this vendor live up to the highest scrutiny of documents, processes and people? Can your vendor provide standardizing pricing and service across the US? Does this vendor have the highest level of security for data destruction? The answer to both questions is NAID AAA Certification.
Learn more about NAID AAA Certification here
Review Guardian Data Destruction’s certifications here
Talk to us about industry standards or your data destruction challenge. Contact us here
