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The Naval Surface Warfare Center at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico has—literally—tons of IT hardware and equipment used for classified programs that need to be destroyed by the most secure and irreversible means.
While White Sands Missile Range is an Army facility, NAVSEA researchers have a detachment there working on "land-based weapons system testing, directed energy weapons testing"—lasers—"and research rocket launch support," according to their webpage. Those researchers have on hand some 4,000 pounds of IT equipment, including magnetic, optical and solid-state storage devices with highly sensitive, classified data.
The center issued a solicitation for destruction services that specifically calls for all designated equipment to be burned "to ash."
The information stored on these devices is highly sensitive, as evidenced by the physical security requirements set forth in the solicitation. The incineration facility must have "at the minimum, secure entry, 24-hour armed guards and 24/7 camera surveillance with recordable date and time capabilities."
https://www.nextgov.com/cybersecurity/2019/02/navy-needs-2-tons-storage-devices-burned-ash/154629/
(Score: 1) by SvenErik on Tuesday February 12 2019, @01:26PM (4 children)
They should look into using one a steel mill or other nearby melting plants. I work at a Ferro Silicon Manganese producer, and I throw hard-disks in the furnaces to get rid of them.
With that quantity, they probably have to parcel it over some time out so they will not pollute the melt too much, but should not be a big issue.
"Every demand is a prison, and wisdom is only free when it asks nothing." Sir Bertrand Russell
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 12 2019, @01:37PM (2 children)
or they could send them to Hawaii and dump them in a river of lava.
I doubt the possibly toxic chemicals from this stuff would do any damage there.
Since they're the Navy, they probably have regular shipments to and from Hawaii anyway where 2 extra tons of cargo isn't a big deal.
(Score: 2) by VLM on Tuesday February 12 2019, @02:22PM
A lot of good engineering suggestions above if pollution is not an issue, but this being the gov we can assume its gotta be EPA to hell and back.
Otherwise its just the good old thermite grenade treatment. The big red soup cans like we had in the army.
GIs being GIs the othe office workers had to be specifically told that emergency demolition meant a thermite grenade over the hard drive in the server case; the somewhat less computer savvy thought the keyboard or the CRT (this was decades ago) would be the proper spot for a thermite "just in case". No, I never got to do this or even knew anyone who got to do this or knew anyone who knew anyone etc. But in theory if the enemy overran the facility the drives need destruction.
I have seen thermite grenades going off and it probably looks worse than it is, but it looks like how you'd think a superfund site is born.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by DannyB on Tuesday February 12 2019, @03:27PM
Put the hard drives through a "chipper" first so they come out in small pieces. The smaller pieces are easier for the lava to destroy.
The lower I set my standards the more accomplishments I have.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 12 2019, @11:56PM
Or just have 1 big 'who cares' melt?