The terms data destruction and data sanitization are sometimes used interchangeably, but they are not the same. Data destruction is more of a general term used to describe the process of removing data from computer hard drives, mobile devices, tape, and other types of storage media. While that may sound like what you need—data destruction doesn’t make the data permanently unrecoverable.
When sensitive data has reached its end-of-life, data sanitization must be employed to intentionally and permanently destroy it by overwriting (wiping), degaussing, and shredding the media, which includes verification and certification.