Don’t ever expect a business computer to be used again

Tuesday, 1 December 2009

While the ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ mantra is becoming second nature in our everyday lives both at home and at work, more than 90 per cent of IT decision-makers don’t appear to care whether their computers could be used again once their organisation has finished with them.

While companies may well be complying with the EU’s Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive, which demands the amount of IT waste sent to landfill is reduced, research conducted by IT refurbisher Remploy e-cycle reveals this is more likely to be from recycling component parts rather than from ensuring computers are able to be used again.

Asked what their considerations were when disposing of their old IT, only eight per cent said they were concerned about making sure computers could be put to a positive use by someone else where as nearly three quarters (73 per cent) claimed to recycle old equipment.

Remploy e-cycle commissioned the study for the launch of its new Re-use IT campaign which aims to reduce the levels of IT waste being sent to landfill by encouraging the re-use of otherwise redundant equipment once all pre-existing data has been securely erased.

Remploy e-cycle general manager Malcolm Watson says: “The importance of reusing things is now well understood for many types of waste, both in the office and at home, yet for some reason IT equipment such as laptops, printers, mobile phones and PDAs seem to be treated differently.

“We believe vast amounts of IT waste are unnecessarily being recycled every year when it could easily be used again. Our Re-use IT campaign aims to make both business people and consumers alike realise that their computers can be reused, providing all the information they hold is securely erased.

“Our philosophy is always refurbish and reuse, and only dispose if a computer can’t easily be fixed. Once refurbished, machines can be sold, redeployed back into an organisation or donated to charity.”

And, when it comes to disposing of IT waste, Remploy e-cycle believes an organisation is only as good as its disposal partner - a fact that several high profile organisations have alarmingly discovered.

In July of this year it was reported that e-waste belonging to the MoD which had allegedly been sold to a British company for re-use1 had been found in Ghana’s capital Accra. This discovery came just 12 months after computers from five NHS trusts were also unearthed in Ghana2. Children were melting down the empty shells of electronic equipment found on wasteland for tiny amounts of scrap metal, risking injury and releasing dangerous toxic gases that can cause serious damage to their nervous systems.

Media reports such as these have clearly had an impact in terms of data fraud as, when disposing of IT equipment, almost half (46 per cent) of IT directors say data falling into the wrong hands is their biggest concern. Re-use however, a more than viable option after full data erasure, is much lower down the agenda with just one in eight (13 per cent) stating they are most anxious whether all the individual components from their e-waste will be recycled. And those whose greatest concern is whether equipment can be used again are in the minority at seven per cent.

To ensure complete and unrecoverable data erasure, essential in safeguarding against fraud as well as to allow for re-use, Remploy e-cycle uses BLANCCO software. With CESG Level 5 security, a system approved for Government data cleansing here in Britain that also exceeds all the standards set by US Federal Government too, this provides guaranteed data protection which allows for the potential reuse of IT equipment. In fact Remploy e-cycle has now overseen the donation of some 30,000 data safe PCs to African countries, not to mention many more closer to home, aiding the education of countless individuals and communities.

Once permanently and securely wiped of all pre-existing data, Remploy e-cycle arranges for old IT equipment to be redeployed within the customers own business, or sold or donated to charity on their behalf. If a PC cannot be refurbished its individual components are recycled to the point where nothing of the original equipment remains. Remploy use similarly secure processes to remove personal data from PDAs and other devices containing memory entering its processing facilities.

Malcolm Watson concludes: “As businesses and individuals alike we need to consider the environmental impact of all that we undertake. Disposal of our IT equipment is no different so I strongly urge everyone to support re-use wherever possible.

“Successful re-use of IT equipment does however, require a truly trusted and effective disposal partner. So unless complete data erasure is provided as standard, a business simply cannot guarantee their data will not fall into the wrong hands. Therefore it’s not just about recycling; it’s about doing it effectively and securely too.”

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