Illinois Statutes Chapter 20. Executive Branch § 450/5. Findings

(a) The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in a recent study, discovered that many companies and individuals are regularly selling or donating computer hard drives with sensitive information still on them, such as credit card numbers, bank and medical records, and personal e-mail.

(b) Illinois currently has no law addressing data security and removal of data from surplus State-owned computers that are to be (i) disposed of by sale, donation, or transfer or (ii) relinquished to a successor executive administration.

(c) In order to ensure the protection of sensitive information relating to the State and its citizens, it is necessary to implement policies to (i) overwrite all hard drives of surplus State-owned electronic data processing equipment that are to be sold, donated, or transferred and (ii) preserve the data on State-owned electronic data processing equipment that is to be relinquished to a successor executive administration for the continuity of government functions.