8.10 Information Deletion

Information stored in information systems, devices or in any other storage media should be deleted when no longer required.

Information deletion in information security refers to the process of securely removing or destroying data from a computer system or storage device. This can include the deletion of files, folders, and entire partitions or hard drives. The goal is to ensure that sensitive or confidential information is not recoverable by unauthorised individuals and to prevent data breaches.

Several methods of information deletion can be used, such as:

• File deletion: This involves using the operating system's built-in file deletion commands, such as "delete" or "rm" in Windows and Linux respectively. However, this method only marks the space as available to be overwritten, the data is still recoverable.
• Secure file deletion: This involves using specialized software or utilities that overwrite the data multiple times, making it impossible to recover using standard data recovery techniques.
• Hard drive wiping: This involves using specialized software or hardware to completely erase all data from a hard drive or storage device, including the operating system and all files. This method is typically used when a device is being decommissioned or sold.
• Physical destruction: This involves physically destroying the storage device, such as shredding it or melting it down, this method is typically used for devices that contain extremely sensitive data.
It is important to have a data deletion plan in place and to regularly review and update it to ensure that it remains effective in addressing new and emerging vulnerabilities. Additionally, it is important to have incident response plan in place to address any security incident, which includes the secure deletion of data.