Retired devices still hold student records, logins, photos and cached files. Before any device leaves your district, you need to know the data is gone and be able to prove it. NIST Special Publication 800-88, the federal guideline for media sanitization, is the standard most districts and auditors point to.
Clear, purge and destroy
NIST 800-88 describes three levels of sanitization:
Clear: overwriting or resetting user data so it can't be recovered with ordinary tools. A standard factory reset on a modern device is a form of clear.
Purge: making data unrecoverable even with lab techniques. On iPads, Macs and Chromebooks, this is typically done with a cryptographic erase, which destroys the encryption key so the stored data can never be read.
Destroy: physically shredding or disintegrating the storage, so the device can't be reused. This is reserved for broken devices or the strictest policies.
Modern iPads, Apple silicon Macs and Chromebooks encrypt storage by default, which makes a verified cryptographic erase both fast and highly effective. That lets devices be reused and resold, which returns value to your district, rather than shredded.
What proof to ask for
Whoever handles your devices should give you:
A serialized report listing every device received by serial number.
The method used for each device (clear, purge or destroy).
A certificate of data destruction you can keep on file.
Chain-of-custody details from pickup to processing.
If a vendor can't show you serial-level documentation, you can't prove what happened to student data.
How this ties to FERPA
FERPA requires districts to protect student education records. A documented, standards-based wipe is how you show those records didn't leave with the hardware.
Need documented data destruction for your next refresh? Every device we process is wiped to NIST 800-88 standards and listed on a serialized audit report. Request a free estimate.