Drive and device wiping

This is a wipe-only service for computers, drives, phones and tablets, with every device logged and certified. The kit stays yours throughout and nothing is sold unless you ask us to.

Who uses it

This service suits three kinds of job.

• Leasing and rental companies clearing returned kit before it goes back out.
• IT support companies and MSPs wiping client devices between contracts.
• Firms re-issuing laptops and phones between staff.
• Businesses keeping, donating or selling their own kit who need a certificate for their records.

Say an IT support company has 25 laptops back from a client and wants them wiped before they go out to new staff. We collect the batch, wipe every machine and send it back with a certificate for each one, ready to reissue.

What happens to each device

Before the wipe, we record make, model, serial, processor, RAM, drive type and size, and BIOS notes covering passwords, Secure Boot and TPM. Drive health is checked, with SMART status and power-on hours recorded.

Every drive goes through our in-house erasure system. Every sector is overwritten and the overwrite verified, to NIST 800-88. SSDs and NVMe drives get a firmware-level secure erase where the drive supports it, with an overwrite where it doesn't. Every drive in a machine is wiped, not only the boot drive.

Phones, tablets and Apple devices are recorded by serial and model straight from the device, then erased and reset to factory settings, with each one checked as reset afterwards. Doing this properly for a batch takes time: noting every serial, confirming the reset and keeping an accurate record. That record, not the reset itself, is what you are paying for.

A drive that fails during the wipe is never passed off as wiped. We tell you, and physical destruction can be arranged on request.

Reinstalling an operating system is optional and done on request. We can install a fresh copy of Windows in the version you choose, macOS on Apple kit, or Linux on older machines no longer supported by Windows updates, so you are not left running an unsupported system.

What the certificate lists

You get our own Certificate of Data Destruction listing each device by serial, with the wipe method and verification result. Phones and tablets are listed on the same certificate, by serial and model.

There's more on how our erasure and certificates work.

Collection and on-site wiping

We collect locally across Shropshire, Cheshire, North Wales and the West Midlands. Further afield, we collect larger loads UK-wide by courier or arranged collection, and send a prepaid box and label for smaller lots. On-site wiping is available for larger jobs. Ask us.

Mixed batches are fine. Laptops, desktops, loose drives, phones and tablets can all go through in one job, and every job is agreed individually before we collect.

Helpful, not essential

A device list with serials speeds things up, if you have one. Any format is welcome, such as a spreadsheet, photos of the labels or a rough description. Remove BIOS and hard disk passwords, or send them with your kit list. If devices are enrolled in Intune or another MDM, Autopilot or Apple Activation Lock, release them before collection if they're leaving your management. If they're coming back to you, tell us and we'll agree what stays.

Clearing some of it for good? We buy that too. See what we buy.

Wipe-only questions

Do you buy the kit as well?

No, this service is wipe-only and the kit goes back to you or on to the leasing company. If some of it is going for good, tell us when you book and we'll make an offer on that part, collected in the same trip.

Can't we just factory reset them ourselves?

Yes, for most devices you can. What you are paying us for is the time and care that doing it properly across a batch takes: noting every serial, confirming each reset, and producing one certificate that lists every device so your records are accurate.

Can the laptops go straight to the leasing company afterwards?

Yes. Where the kit is going is agreed when we book the job, and it goes on as arranged, with a certificate for each device.

What standard do you wipe to?

NIST 800-88, the US government guideline for media sanitisation. Every sector is overwritten and the overwrite verified. SSDs and NVMe drives get a firmware-level secure erase where the drive supports it, with an overwrite where it doesn't. The Certificate of Data Destruction lists each device by serial.

What happens if a drive fails during the wipe?

We don't pass it off as wiped. We tell you which device and drive failed, and physical destruction can be arranged on request so you still have a record for that unit.

Can you wipe on site?

Yes, for larger jobs. Ask us when you book and we'll agree whether the job suits collection or on-site wiping.

Tell us what needs wiping and we'll come back to you.