If an asset is lost or stolen in transit to a disposal facility, your first priority should not be to disassociate those assets. Your first priority should be to determine whether a security incident has occurred. Authorities can easily trace a device back to your organization using the manufacturer serial number or the data stored on the device.
Asset tags should not be removed. When documented in an ITAD vendor’s audit report, they help establish chain of custody—especially since ITAD vendors frequently fail to capture manufacturer serial numbers accurately. Your recommendation is risky and overlooks key regulatory compliance requirements.
