Question

A company is retiring a batch of solid-state drives (SSDs) that stored confidential customer data. A technician plans to run a strong magnetic degausser over the drives to ensure the data cannot be recovered before disposal. Why is this approach flawed for these devices?

Accepted Answer

Degaussing relies on altering magnetic fields, but SSDs store data in flash memory chips, so degaussing will not reliably erase the data

Answer

Degaussing is only effective when the drives are powered on and actively spinning

Answer

Degaussing permanently encrypts the data rather than destroying it, leaving it recoverable with the key

Answer

Degaussing works fine on SSDs but must be repeated at least seven times to meet standards