What the standards and terms mean, in plain words, and where to find the API documentation and the agent download.
What the names mean, and what IQValidate does and does not do about them.
The US guideline for sanitizing storage media. It names three levels: Clear (overwrite the drive using normal write commands), Purge (stronger methods, such as the drive's own erase command), and Destroy (physical destruction). IQValidate overwrites drives today, so its wipes are recorded as Clear. A wipe is recorded as Purge only when the agent runs the drive's own erase command and the checks afterwards pass. That is rolling out with agent support.
A certification for electronics recyclers and refurbishers. Its auditors look at how data is wiped and how assets are tracked. IQValidate gives you wipe records and chain of custody to show them; certification is awarded to your company, not to a tool.
A certification program for companies that destroy information for others. Auditors look at records of what was destroyed, when, and by whom. IQValidate produces those records and certificates of destruction; it does not make you NAID certified.
The record of one drive wipe: drive serial number, method, NIST SP 800-88 level, the read-back check, who ran it, when, and the work order. Each IQValidate certificate has a verification code and QR code that open a public check page.
Documentation and downloads.
IT asset disposition has its own vocabulary. These are the terms you will see on IQValidate screens and certificates.
A record that a drive was wiped. It states the method used and the check done afterwards. It is a statement of what the software did, not a guarantee.
A record that a drive or device was physically destroyed, such as shredded. It lists the items, the method, the date and who did it.
The history of an asset: who had it, where it was, and what was done to it at each step.
NIST SP 800-88 levels. Clear overwrites the drive using normal write commands. Purge uses stronger methods, such as the drive's own erase command; NIST describes it as making recovery infeasible even with laboratory techniques. Today IQValidate records Clear; Purge is rolling out with agent support.
After the overwrite, the software reads the drive to check the pattern is there. A full read-back checks every block; a spot check reads a sample. The certificate says which one was done.
The number the manufacturer prints on a drive. IQValidate keys each wipe record to it, so you can look up everything done to one drive.
The job number for a batch of equipment from a customer. Wipes and certificates are grouped by it.
A short random code printed on a certificate. Anyone can enter it on the public check page to see the certificate's details, with the serial number partly hidden.