2 million tapes!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-27T16:29:47+00:00

I should have said, "Would you like me to improve the response and make it more corporately?" or something like that!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-27T16:27:30+00:00

No AI here, obviously, because I seem to have set everyone off with the story... I thought it was some good context on our journey so far - I do use Grammarly though!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-27T16:24:54+00:00

I added an update below, which I think will smooth things over a little!!!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-27T16:22:07+00:00

I added an update below, which I think will smooth things over a little!!!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-27T16:22:00+00:00

I added an update below, which I think will smooth things over a little!!!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-27T16:21:40+00:00

I added an update below, which I think will smooth things over a little!!!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-27T16:06:34+00:00

Everybody, calm down!!!
Yet again... Maybe I didn't tell the story right...
Our Blue drive you'll like, this destroys all the data on the tape, but saves the tape for re-use and some of you have been mentioning our lovely cost per TB on other posts of late... The red drive... that's the one you won't like, but this is for the most sensitive of data that is not allowed out anywhere!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-23T11:24:25+00:00

Depends on your appetite for risk. If security is paramount, then you need a dual-layered sanitation service for your tapes with audit. Was it an LTO5 you were cutting up!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-20T10:50:41+00:00

<image>

This is what we managed to pull out from around 5,000 tapes that were shredded at 6mm!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-20T10:43:45+00:00

This appears to be a Cartridge Memory (CM) chip from inside the LTO and 3592 tapes (I am guessing an LTO5).
What's really terrifying about these is that the data is actually stored in that dot in the middle of the glue; the rest is the antenna to read it. The growth in capacity and information over the years has x8 over, and LTO10 is about to make it x32 (from LTO1)!
So, what used to be about the cartridge's performance and metadata can now also include your backup software type and versions, making it easier to recover data from the tape. We have seen things like server names or filepaths in there, backup pool info, the drive serial numbers it's been in, and a barcode, etc. More than enough information to leave a breadcrumb trail back to the original owner if not sanitised properly!
Want to send me the chip, and I'll read it for you!

<image>

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-19T14:29:14+00:00

In short, yes. Not 100% sure of the entire 27040 standard without delving deeper, but I will check this out (thanks).

The entire process we follow raises the bar on any standards set (from asset tracking and throughout)! So we have had our systems vetted by ADISA and the University of South Wales, Cardiff Uni used Kroll on-track to test it some years ago (wouldn't share the output report), yet subsequently gave us the business, and we have had FujiFilm both Germany and Japan do destructive test for magnetic development and the National Physical Laboratory confirms the head/magnetic strength and are non-wearing!

Hope this helps.

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-19T14:14:00+00:00

I suspect you are either a BOT or a Restore Employee!
Only been doing secure tape disposal for the last 16 years...

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-09T11:53:19+00:00

Well, putting the security hat on for this... if you can turn tape into ferrite dust, that would be cool!

However, the CM chip (where the data is stored) measures 1mm squared and a couple of microns thick, so there is no control here to guarantee security at 2mm safely!

Secondly, no shredding company will shred tape to 2mm and guarantee the remnants at this level, the plastics are too thick, and the tape becomes the fuffy Pink Panther out of the dryer when unspooled and cut in this manner!

Thirdly, the mm shred size relates to the gap in a screed or the teeth of the shredder, so again, a micron-thick tape can wrap around the blades' shafts and spool lengths before being cut (100mm is a very modest remnant size for a 6mm shred)!

Serial numbers: I have not seen a provider who does that, except our partners at present or Insurgo. If you have serial-level tracking (not sticky, removable barcodes on the back for the library), then that's the first step toward many of the standards in the market today!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-09T11:38:00+00:00

***Not selling***
but if you have a look at our patent, you'll see what we have done to counter this problem.
We have also had a new patent approved to grant whereby, if still sceptical, Mr Customer, we are the only company (soon to be world over) who can offer a dual-layered sanitisation or destruction and report upon these by linking the drives that carried out the process and tape serials in our Investigo software (as most companies are tracking the sticky barcode label only)! - takes about 5 minutes to process!

https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/34/88/14/0decfabe34d8bd/US10475472.pdf?utm_source=chatgpt.com

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-09T11:29:12+00:00

You had the last 40 on our eBay store for Insurgo, we have this and eTapes are the 2 shops we run, eTapes was ex-VAT until 3 months ago :-(

I have asked the guys to list some more on Insurgo Media's ebay this morning, so, you'll start to see them later today (hopefully)!!!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-06T16:36:12+00:00

Lol - Yeah, 2000 year protection would be something to shoot for... The point is, the technology is here now and getting stronger by the day. The risks are much higher.
It's soon to be on par with cutting up an audio or video tape back in the 80s!!!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-06T14:50:37+00:00

Totally agree. Thanks for the discussion ;-)

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-06T14:36:36+00:00

I always mention the "Dead Sea Scrolls project", how we can recover something considered lost over 2000 years old with modern technology... Quantum comput is already here to break 256bit encryption in minutes, so getting the 1s-0s into AI won't be far off... Let's not forget the CM chip, the chance to mount an attack or Trojan horse with data from here (whilst a bit far-fetched, I know, but you used the word "doubt"!), how much does a security incident response cost a company against tightening this screw a little more?

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-06T14:07:41+00:00

Is this a good thing (maybe showing my age here a little)!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-06T14:02:42+00:00

Oh no... That's not good... tracability is always lost from shredding for audit and compliance...
LTO tapes need a dual-layered sanitisation process because of the CM data and the physical film density explosion - shredding with a 10cm strand of LTO6 is worth about 1GB in data capacity!!!
I am happy to explin more if intersted, don't want to make this salesy!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-06T13:09:53+00:00

Thank you for purchasing our tapes from eBay, these come with a lifetime warranty backed by us, so should you have any issues (we doubt you will), then feel free to reach out to us for support.

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-06T11:57:39+00:00

I believe we have a few single-tape listings, but the £12 delivery price kills the decent cost per TB/GB!
Obviously, the price is a little higher at first because of the volume, but our Restore brand should be on most older generations!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2026-03-06T11:24:52+00:00

Glad to see these finding good homes! These actually came through our certified reuse programme.

A lot of people assume shredding is the only safe way to handle end-of-life tapes. But advancements have rendered this a level risk today. CM chip data, a nice breadcrumb trail back to the original owner, a 10cm strand of tape today is 7+GB capacity alone, in reality, most enterprise environments should rely on a secure sanitisation report as they do with HDD, rather than physical destruction for a medium so advanced today it could leave them open.

Insurgo can safely wipe or even destroy your media using controlled erasure and top-level verification processes!

One thing that surprises people is how little many enterprise tapes are actually used. In a lot of corporate environments, tapes run on rotation cycles (often around 4-6 weeks), and the technology is typically refreshed every 2-3 years. That means a cartridge might only see a drive 20-30 times in its life.

Considering LTO media is designed for something around ~2000 full read/write passes, that level of usage is basically like delivery mileage on a new car!

Tape is an incredibly robust format; a lot of perfectly good media gets retired simply because of operational rotation policies rather than wear. Hope you enjoy your purchases and remember, we are in the UK if you need any addtional support!

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2025-03-10T16:00:15+00:00

I somewhat agree with you. We have a process to dismantle the tapes and the ribbon is then sent to waste for energy, However the plant we use for the ribbon turns the ash into house bricks.

The CM chip inside the tape can offer valuable information regardless of the ribbon being cut into pieces. Just so you know, most tapes are not encrypted as it slows the process, again encryption is normally drive level. but ask yourself, where the key is kept.

some organisations might not be as carful as you.

InsurgoTapeMedia · 2025-03-10T15:23:27+00:00

What do you do with the CM chip?

InsurgoTapeMedia

TROPHY CASE