Why we need to face up to the e-waste problem [Q&A]

A record 59.1 million tonnes (53.6 million tons) of e-waste was generated by homes and businesses in 2019, but only 17.4 percent of it was correctly recycled, the rest ending up in landfill or other disposal routes.

With the amount of e-waste expected to grow further, it's still the case that many people simply don't know where or how to properly recycle their obsolete devices.

We spoke to electronic waste and cybersecurity expert John Shegerian, chairman/CEO of the largest cybersecurity-focused hardware destruction and electronic waste recycling company in the United States, ERI, and co-author of The Insecurity of Everything to discuss why tech recycling is a big part of the circular economy and how you can reduce your technology's impact on the environment.

BN: Why is the volume of e-waste growing so fast?

JS: 20 years after we started the company, e-waste not only remains the fastest growing solid waste stream in the world. It's the fastest growing solid waste stream by an order of magnitude of two to four times greater than the second fastest, which happens to be plastics.

And why has this explosion happened? There are a couple of factors that we need to consider. First of all, according to the United Nations, only 17 percent of the electronics that are used on this planet are currently being responsibly recycled. So there's an 83 percent opportunity to recycle much more electronics responsibly, not only in North America, but across the whole planet. Number two, since we got into this industry 20 years ago, there's been an explosion in the ubiquity of electronics.

We all now have wearables that we enjoy, whether it's our Garmin watches or other big brand watches or Oura Rings, we wear these devices to track all the data or the internet of things, such as our Nest, Alexa, Ring and all the other gadgets that help us monitor and keep our homes and businesses safer, but also contain our private data. All these materials need to be responsibly recycled at their end-of-lives. Cars today too have become computers on wheels, with hard drives containing an array of private data. Those hard drives need to be either wiped at their end of life or responsibly destroyed and recycled.

Even domestic white goods such as refrigerators and washing machines now have hard drives in them. So white goods can now have a brain and a hard drive to, for example, tell us when our milk and eggs need to be refilled. And in many cases, they can automatically send that order to Amazon or to some other fulfillment retailer and have products delivered immediately to the home or business. Drones, robots, video games… The ubiquity of electronics is everywhere we look and the opportunity for all of us as stakeholders to do better is real and unstoppable.

BN: How much valuable material can be recovered by properly recycling?

JS: It used to just be the precious metals, but now, thanks to technological innovations and the rise of the circular economy, virtually all elements of all devices can be responsibly recycled and put to beneficial reuse. Even the plastic and glass in old devices can be broken down and used to make new products.

BN: What are the cybersecurity implications of not processing e-waste correctly?

JS: It was never our original mission to focus on cybersecurity or data protection. But what we saw after we founded ERI was the rise of privacy rights across America and also the cybersecurity movement. We saw the rise in Silicon Valley of Palantir, which was created on or around 2003, then LifeLock, the privacy protection company out of Arizona, was founded in 2007. And the word cybersecurity got to be known from 2008 through 2013-2014.

Hardware hacking and the unethical mining of data from discarded electronic devices is the big cybersecurity story that is too often overlooked in today's society, both by consumers as well as businesses. Data destruction and hardware hacking pose a tremendous threat to individuals and organizations alike. In an age of rapid technology turnover, mounting e-waste and the increasing presence of the internet of things, people, organizations and even government agencies are more vulnerable to hardware hacking than ever before. The consequences of resulting breaches can be devastating in terms of loss of privacy, bad publicity and massive fines.

The issue impacts every person and organization around the globe today.

The cybercriminals in 2015 successfully stole $3 trillion from people around the world. Fast forward to 2021, a mere six years later, and the cybercriminals have succeeded in stealing $6 trillion. In just six years, the amount that the cyber criminals made away with has doubled. So, the problem is real. The problem is undeniable, irrefutable, and it's growing at exponential rates.

BN: What steps should you take to protect your data before disposing of a device?

JS: Never just throw anything away. From the data destruction side, send your devices to an ITAD or recycling company that is SOC 2 certified, NAID AAA certified (or both). And from the environmental perspective, find an ITAD or recycling company that is a BAN 'e-steward' or R2 certified (or both). Simply deleting your data or doing a reset isn't enough -- the data on your device can still be recovered and mined.

BN: How and where can you find out about disposing of e-waste safely?

JS: There are many great resources, but one I recommend is RecycleNation.com, where you can enter information about what you want to recycle (be it electronics or anything else) and find out a responsible recycler near you that you can trust to recycle the materials responsibly. Retailers such as Best Buy, Staples and many others have programs where you can recycle your devices. Many municipalities such as New York City, Los Angeles, and countless others from coast to coast have electronic waste programs or annual e-waste drives to collect devices. The most important thing is to ask the question, "Where is my device ultimately going to be recycled and will my data all be destroyed?" To ensure this, make sure to utilize an electronics recycling company that is SOC2, NAID AAA, R2, and e-Stewards certified, such as ERI.

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