How to Properly Dispose of Your Old Computer Equipment

Properly disposing of old computer equipment involves four steps that must happen in order: inventory, data destruction, physical disposition (recycling or remarketing), and documentation. Inventory: Before anything is moved, create a complete list of every device being decommissioned — make, model, serial number, and asset tag. This inventory is the foundation of your chain-of-custody documentation and is essential for matching certificates of destruction to specific devices.

Data destruction: Every hard drive, SSD, and other storage medium must be destroyed or certified-wiped before the device leaves your facility or the ITAD provider's custody. For hard drives, degaussing plus physical shredding is the gold standard; for SSDs, physical shredding is the only reliable method since degaussing does not affect flash memory. Request a serialized certificate documenting each destroyed drive by serial number and destruction method.

Physical disposition and documentation: Once data is destroyed, working computers may be refurbished and remarketed; non-working devices go directly to the recycling stream. In either case, obtain a certificate of recycling or remarketing confirming final disposition. Retain all certificates — inventory, data destruction, and recycling — for at least three years. STS Recycling handles all four steps for businesses throughout Illinois. Contact Chicago Lamp Recycling at 866-770-2650.