Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best way to sell your used computer equipment?
You have basically three main options when it comes to selling used used computer equipment and parts:
- Finding your own buyer (i.e., by advertising them on Craigslist)
- Listing your goods on online marketplaces like eBay
- Selling your goods to specialist ITAD companies like Big Data Supply Inc.
Out of the three, selling your old computer parts to an ITAD company offers the most benefits. The ITAD company will do everything for you, including performing certified processes for securely wiping data from your used computer equipment (especially storage drives.) When needed, Big Data Supply Inc. would also be able to provide a Certificate of Data Destruction, which may be legally required in your industry.
Especially if you are in a regulated industry or if you are selling computer parts in bulk, selling to a specialist ITAD company is the best option.
How to find out how much my used computer equipment costs?
The value of your used computer parts can vary depending on several factors, including:
Age: the older the used computer equipment is, the lower its market price will be
Condition: used computer parts in good condition will be priced higher compared to those with functional or cosmetic defects
Availability of newer models: most computer equipment will decrease in price when a direct replacement has been released. If there isn't any direct replacement for the equipment (even if it's fairly old), the price should remain stable.
Rarity: very rare used computer parts can go up in price due to scarcity.
Fortunately, nowadays, finding out the market price of your used computer equipment is fairly easy. You can simply search for similar goods on market price sites like eBay, Amazon, or even Craigslist and check how much others sell the computer parts for.
How to delete all the data from used computer equipment?
Before selling any used computer equipment that stores data (HDD, SSD, etc.,) it's crucial to make sure all data (especially confidential and/or regulated information) is securely and completely erased from the IT equipment.
Ensuring data security and integrity is not only important for protecting your customer's information, but failure to do so may also cause legal repercussions for your business.
There are various methods you can use to perform secure data wiping by yourself before selling your used computer parts, and the basic ones are:
For HDDs:
On Windows:
Run Windows Disk Management. Click Start->Run, then type diskmgmt.msc in the box
Select the drive to be formatted
Uncheck the "perform a quick format" checkbox, and select NTFS
Format the drive three times to make sure it's totally clean
On macOS
Go to the Utilities folder and run Disk Utility (you can open the Utilities folder by hitting Apple+Shift+U together)
Select the drive to be formatted, and click erase
Repeat the process three times
For SSDs:
Most of the well-known SSD manufacturers offer their own disk management solutions that you can use to perform secure wiping. Another option is to use third-party solutions like Blancco Drive Eraser (free with premium version) as well as other free and paid options available out there.
If you are selling your old computer equipment and parts to companies specializing in bulk-buying IT equipment (including hard drives), they will securely wipe your data for you. Some buyers may also hire a third-party specialist for this purpose.
This is why selling your used computer parts to specialists like Big Data Supply.Inc is preferred, so you don't have to worry about performing secure data deletion by yourself.
What should be deleted from computer equipment before selling?
In general, you should delete everything.
If you don't wipe your data before you sell your computer equipment, the new owner (and potentially bad actors) could gain access to this data.
However, it's especially important to wipe any sensitive/confidential/regulated data, including but not limited to:
- Personally Identifiable Information (PII) like full name, address, phone number, etc., especially customer's PII
- Health and genetic data
- Biometric data
- Banking and credit card details
- Files that can be used against your business or your reputation as an individual
What should I do with my old computer equipment?
Basically, with any old, used and/or unused computer equipment, you have three basic options:
Recycle/dispose of: if the old computer equipment has low resale value, no longer functions well, or if you consider it too risky to sell (i.e., if it contains sensitive data), then you can dispose of the computer parts after arranging physical destruction or recycling.
Repurpose: if the old computer parts are still in good condition (can function properly but has relatively low resale value, you can repurpose it. For example, you can turn an HDD into an external drive A.
Sell: the option to take if your used computer parts and equipment still has a high enough resale value and if you are confident about secure data deletion. If you are selling your used computer parts and equipment to specialist ITAD vendors like Big Data Supply Inc., you don't have to worry about having to securely wipe your data.
