Problem:
This particular SaaS provider has ingrained data security into its very DNA, extending protection beyond the network right down to each disk drive. From day one, they’ve adhered to a strict policy: all storage media must be cleansed to the rigorous U.S. NIST Special Publication 800-88 Revision 1: Guidelines for Media Sanitization Purge standard with verification to prevent any customer data compromise. This commitment is substantial, especially considering the enormous expansion and constant churn of storage hardware required to support their aggressive growth. A critical component of this process is ensuring that these systems and their associated individual storage devices can be safely returned at the end of their lease, avoiding significant financial penalties from vendors.
Challenges:
The sheer scale of this customer’s operations presented considerable challenges for data erasure. Their aggressive technology refresh schedule meant dozens of storage systems and thousands of hard drives needed to be wiped clean each year. In the past year alone, this involved 22,892 storage devices—including hard disk drives (HDDs), solid-state drives (SSDs), non-volatile memory express (NVMe) drives, and specialized Hitachi Flash Module Drives (FMDs) – across 76 Hitachi storage systems of various models. This high volume demanded not just expertise but also extreme scalability from their chosen erasure vendor. Further, the customer required a solution that could erase large storage arrays directly on the raised floor, often while still powered up, to efficiently clear space for new technology and minimize operational disruption.
Results:
By applying our proven methodology to every system and device, Revert ensured that the data on all storage media was destroyed in compliance with the stringent NIST 800-88 Purge standard. This rigorous process allowed the customer to confidently return systems at the end of their lease without fear of unauthorized data access.
The financial impact was immense: in the past year alone, Revert’s services enabled the company to avoid a staggering $18 million in potential charges, representing a return on their service investment of more than 30 times.