For many, the word “degaussing” may be foreign. It’s the process of disrupting the magnetic field on items that retain data to protect information. NSA approved degaussers change the magnetic domain on different storage devices, rendering the data unreadable and unrecoverable. There are four main types of degaussing technology. Knowing the different types of degaussers will allow you to find the one you need based on the sensitivity of the information, how often it would be used, and where it will be set up.
Conveyor Belt Degausser
This technology uses the electromagnet beneath a conveyor belt. When a device hovers over the electromagnet, the magnetic field is destroyed along with all the data. However, it can be difficult to pinpoint if all of the targeted data was deleted. Furthermore, it’s important to turn over the disk that the information is being removed from, either with a machine or manually when using the conveyor belt degausser.
AC Degausser
Like the Conveyor Belt Degausser, items are placed over a strong electromagnet. The difference is the AC Degausser technology resembles a scanner with a glass surface. The tape or disk is placed on the glass to disrupt the magnetic field but must be turned multiple times to be effective. This is an entirely manual operation and can be dangerous to use without protective gloves due to the proximity of the magnetic field.
Permanent-Magnet Degausser
Unlike the Conveyor Belt or AC technology, the Permanent-Magnet Degausser uses strong and natural magnets. These two degaussing magnets are always on, and the tape or disk is placed between them to erase the data. Due to the magnets being on continuously, the hardware must be secure to protect other technology and the user from leaking magnetic fields. Magnetic degaussers are large and typically need to be set up where they will stay. Both electromagnetic degaussers and magnetic degaussers are secure ways to protect your information.
Impulse Degausser
The Impulse Degausser uses an electromagnetic coil to send a high-frequency electromagnetic pulse through the coil to destroy its entirety. The tape or disk is placed inside the coil. These degaussers may be built smaller and are easy to transport and consume less energy than the others. The Impulse Degausser poses less of a health risk as well because the magnetic fields are only active for a couple of seconds at a time.
It’s important to choose a degausser based on the amount of data you need to destroy and the frequency at which you will do so. Each operation is different and depends on several circumstances. Refer to Capital Shredder Corp.for an extensive selection of different types of degaussers based on your needs.
