What is ITAD (IT Asset Disposition)?

As businesses become more tech-dependent, a major hurdle emerges: safe and responsible asset disposal of obsolete technology. Think about all those old servers and software licenses. What happens to your it assets? Getting rid of old computers is only half the battle. What about all that private information? Companies need to think about that too.

Without the right process, disposing of IT assets can lead to data breaches, legal issues, and environmental harm.

IT asset disposition (ITAD) is the process of discarding end-of-life IT electronics and accessories such as computers, servers, hard drives, and accessories. The goal is to protect sensitive data, comply with data privacy laws, and minimize environmental impact.

Disposition doesn’t automatically imply throwing away IT equipment. It involves:

• Data sanitization: permanently erasing data to prevent unauthorized access
• Repair and reuse: extending the life of functioning devices
• Recycling: properly disposing of materials in an eco-friendly way
• Repurposing or donating: finding new uses for old equipment

The primary focus of ITAD is data protection. Before any asset is discarded, data is securely wiped or destroyed to ensure it’s unrecoverable.

ITAD as Part of IT Lifecycle Management

IT asset lifecycle management covers the full journey of tech equipment—from acquisition to deployment, maintenance, and finally, disposal. ITAD represents the final and often overlooked stage in this cycle.

Incorporating ITAD into your lifecycle strategy ensures that:

• Disposal aligns with business and compliance goals
• Sensitive data is properly secured and destroyed
• Environmental regulations and sustainability goals are met

By planning for end-of-life equipment just as carefully as the purchase of new tech, businesses can reduce risk, recover value, and maintain a responsible IT ecosystem.

Common IT assets that require disposition at their end-of-life include:

• Laptops
• Servers
• Hard drives
• Desktop computers
• Monitors
• Keyboards
• Mice
• Routers
• Chargers
• Cables
• Flash drives
• CDs
• Mobile phones
• Tablets

Why Is ITAD Important?

Responsible ITAD practices are important for businesses to achieve several benefits.

Data Security and Risk Mitigation

Data breaches are costly and can seriously harm your reputation. A good ITAD strategy is a key part of protecting sensitive information on old devices. Neglecting ITAD can be expensive: the average data breach cost $3.86 million in 2020.

Your old hardware could become an easy target for criminals, even unintentionally. Secure data erasure is essential. ITAD policies are there to address data security and to provide guidance, too.

Companies need plans to wipe data or use asset destruction methods securely. Doing so keeps you compliant with rules about privacy. Following a robust ITAD plan helps avoid potential compliance issues and data leaks.

Regulatory Compliance

Business IT assets store large amounts of data, including personally identifiable information (PII). This data is highly protected by strict laws, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). ITAD provides guidelines for organizational compliance with these regulations to prevent sensitive data leakage and regulatory fines.

There are additional regulations that oversee the responsible disposal of electronic waste. For instance, the Secure E-Waste Export and Recycling Act (SEERA) restricts the exportation of specific categories of e-waste to prevent the re-entry of counterfeit goods manufactured with recycled material.

Environmental Impact

Electronic waste is already a significant global issue and is likely to worsen with the increased adoption of technology and devices in nearly all aspects of life. Businesses must do their part to reduce their carbon footprint by adopting sustainable ITAD practices. Disposition methods such as recycling, reusing, and remarketing minimize the amount of e-waste sent to landfills.

Customers, investors, and employees increasingly care about responsible practices. With proper ITAD, your company can achieve a positive impact and responsibly manage equipment. This approach reduces waste and conserves resources without harming the environment.

Cost Savings and Resource Recovery

Companies can recoup value from old IT assets by prioritizing reuse strategies, such as repairing, refurbishing, and remarketing. Avoiding fines and other penalties for noncompliance with ITAD rules and data protection regulations also saves your organization money.

The ITAD Process: How IT Asset Disposition Works

A comprehensive ITAD plan contains several crucial steps.

Assessment and Planning: Knowing What You Have

The ITAD process begins with an assessment of all your IT assets and identifying those that are outdated and due for disposal. Catalog these obsolete assets and record key details, such as make, serial number, and model, for tracking purposes.

Assess the condition of these assets to identify those with remaining value and categorize them into groups of those that can be reused, recycled, or those that have to be destroyed. If you’re working with an ITAD service provider, they can help determine an appropriate disposal method for each asset based on their assessment.

Data Destruction and Sanitization: Wiping Devices Properly

The next step in the ITAD process is to identify the data stored in the assets you just identified for disposal and securely destroy it. Take a data inventory and categorize the information based on sensitivity, regulatory requirements, and potential breach risks.

Evaluating the data also allows you to identify the appropriate data sanitization method for each category. Secure data destruction methods include hard drive and media shredding, data wiping, degaussing, overwriting, and cryptographic erasure. The goal is to protect the data stored on decommissioned equipment by ensuring it’s irretrievably destroyed and cannot be compromised after asset disposal.

To ensure this process is handled properly, it’s important to partner with a qualified hard drive and media destruction provider. At Corodata, we are equipped to follow strict compliance protocols and can help you establish consistent data destruction procedures that align with legal and industry-specific requirements.

Asset Decommissioning

Decommissioning involves retiring outdated assets, beginning with disconnecting them from the network, uninstalling software, and deactivating user access rights. To prevent unauthorized identification, remove all company branding and other identifiers from the assets and tag them for tracking throughout the disposition process. Remember to update your asset management system to remove the decommissioned equipment.

Secure Packaging, Transportation, and Disposal

Proper handling during pickup and transportation is a must, of course. If you can’t create this yourself, work with ITAD vendors who specialize in ITAD for their abilities. Determine whether ITAD vendors transport items with a secure chain of custody and reporting along the way.

You want to minimize the chances of damage and theft of equipment in transit. Look to these ITAD-specializing vendors to protect your business when logistics and transportation come into the picture. Without these protections, there could be environmental damage and security data breaches.

At Corodata, we offer a secure chain of custody, detailed reporting, and trained professionals who ensure your equipment is handled with care from pickup to final disposition. With us, you minimize the risk of damage or theft in transit and safeguard against environmental harm or data security breaches.

Recycling and Reuse

An effective ITAD procedure should prioritize sustainable disposal methods to reduce the environmental impact of e-waste and support global efforts to create a circular economy. Sustainable disposal practices include:

• Refurbishing: Assets are cleaned, repaired, and tested for reuse or resale
• Reselling: Individual devices that are still functional, or their components, are remarketed and resold
• Recycling: IT asset recycling allows the recovery of materials that can be used to manufacture other items
• Reusing: Functional IT equipment can be put back to extend its lifespan and save money on the acquisition of new assets
• Donating: Companies can donate old equipment to schools or underserved communities, which can bring tax benefits

Reporting and Compliance Documentation: Tracking Progress

Companies must also maintain detailed records of their disposal process from start to finish. These records are crucial for reporting ITAD practices and providing an audit trail. The documentation also serves as proof of compliance with different data protection and e-waste management regulations such as HIPAA, GDPR, and the e-Stewards certification program. Examples of records to maintain include asset inventories, data destruction logs, and disposal certificates.

Having that tracking is super helpful for audits and verifying everything complies with internal policies. Also, how you manage and process IT assets has legal and branding implications too. Consider these reports valuable to show and display how ITAD programs matter and positively impact a brand’s reputation.

Risks of Improper IT Asset Disposal

The ITAD process recommended above helps companies avoid the risks of improper IT asset disposal.

Legal and Financial Penalties

Companies have paid millions of dollars in fines for failing to manage their ITAD practices and causing data breaches. In February 2025, an ITAD company driver pleaded guilty to stealing and reselling government-issued IT devices that were scheduled for destruction. In this case, the ITAD provider lacked a proper chain of custody and failed to reconcile asset records at the shredding facility to verify that they matched those leaving the client’s premises.

In 2022, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC, a wealth management company, agreed to pay $35 million in fines for improper ITAD practices that exposed its customers’ PII to potential unauthorized access. By hiring inexperienced ITAD providers and failing to monitor the disposition process, the company violated the disposal rule in Regulation S-P for select financial institutions.

Under HIPAA’s privacy rule, covered entities must implement proper disposal methods for IT assets containing protected health information (PHI). Failure to do so can amount to a criminal violation with a penalty of up to 10 years in jail.

Environmental and Brand Reputation Risks

Electronic devices contain harmful metals such as mercury, lead, and nickel. Improper IT asset disposal and e-waste management release these metals into the environment, leading to pollution over time. When toxic materials enter the soil and water, they can seriously affect human health, plants, and aquatic life.

Companies without a proper ITAD policy and procedure in place also risk their brand’s reputation in case of a data breach caused by poor IT asset disposal. According to a 2024 survey, 56 percent of consumers say they wouldn’t trust a company that’s been affected by a data breach with their personal information.

Choosing the Right ITAD Provider

The ITAD service provider you choose to work with can make the difference between a stress-free disposition process and dealing with the risks of improper disposal, including legal repercussions. Here are some questions you can ask a potential ITAD partner before hiring them to ensure effective ITAD and regulatory compliance:

• How do you ensure secure data sanitization, and is there proof of compliance?
• How do you ensure secure packaging, transportation, and tracking of equipment?
• How do you maintain a strong chain of custody?
• What environmentally responsible disposition methods do you employ when disposing of e-waste?
• What compliance standards and certification rules do you adhere to during the ITAD process?
• Do you have case studies or reports showcasing successful ITAD and satisfied customers?
• Do you offer IT equipment remarketing services, and which resale channels do you use?

Key Factors to Consider When Hiring an ITAD Provider

Ensure peace of mind for your company’s ITAD process by considering these factors when selecting an ITAD provider to work with:

• Certifications: Compliance certifications from organizations such as the National Association for Information Destruction (NAID) and California Green Company show an ITAD provider’s commitment to data security and environmental sustainability during the disposal process.
• Chain of custody tracking: If an ITAD company offers off-site equipment destruction, it should have the means to track it from when it leaves your premises until the final destruction for transparency and accountability.
• Locality and industrial experience: Compliance regulations may differ across states or industrial sectors, and it’s best to work with an ITAD partner with expertise in your location and specific industry.
• Reviews from past customers: Reading reviews on consumer sites, such as Yelp and Google Reviews, can provide information about an ITAD company’s quality of services, responsiveness, and commitment to data protection.
• Commitment to environmental sustainability: An ITAD provider should also have well-documented disposal procedures that adhere to relevant federal and state-specific environmental regulations for e-waste disposal.

Importance of Working With Certified ITAD Vendors

Disposing of your company’s IT assets with the help of a certified IT vendor has the following benefits:

• Enhanced data security
• Guaranteed compliance
• Cost savings
• State-of-the-art industrial equipment that guarantees absolute destruction
• Convenience, so you can comfortably focus on other business priorities

Choose Secure IT Asset Disposition With Corodata

The best practices for IT asset disposal ensure regulatory compliance with sustainability and data security standards. With a compliant ITAD strategy, business owners and IT managers can rest assured about proper e-waste management and that their customers’ data doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.

Corodata supports your IT assets disposal by taking over the entire process, from picking up the electronic media to the final equipment destruction and issuing a certificate as proof of compliance.