India’s role as an Apple manufacturing hub has exploded. In the first half of 2025 alone, iPhone production in India surged 53% year-over-year to 23.9 million units, with exports totaling $22.56 billion. Apple now produces approximately 16-17% of global iPhones in India, with projections to reach 25% by 2027.
But there’s a problem most Indian ITADs aren’t talking about: they can’t efficiently process the millions of Macs entering their workflows.
The Hidden Cost of Device Destruction
When faced with Apple Silicon Macs (M1, M2, M3, M4 chips), many ITADs make a costly decision: physical destruction. It’s the path of least resistance when you lack the technical capability to perform certified data erasure on these devices.
The economics are brutal. A destroyed MacBook generates scrap metal revenue. A refurbished MacBook with verified data erasure? That’s a 300-500% higher recovery value. Multiply that across thousands of devices annually, and Indian ITADs are leaving millions in revenue on the table.
Why Apple Silicon Changed Everything
Apple Silicon chips (M1, M2, M3, M4) and T2 security chips require specialized erasure solutions that many ITADs simply don’t have. These aren’t just faster processors—they’re fundamentally different architectures with integrated security features that make traditional erasure methods ineffective or impossible.
The built-in Secure Enclave, hardware-level encryption, and system-on-chip (SoC) design mean you can’t simply pull the drive and wipe it like you could with older Intel-based Macs. Mac devices have embedded SSDs, making it difficult to remove the drive and erase it. Manual workarounds exist, but they’re painfully slow. When you’re processing high volumes, manual methods create bottlenecks that throttle your entire operation.
The Refurbishment Opportunity
India’s refurbishment market is booming. The organized refurbishment segment is expected to capture an increasingly larger share of device processing, driven by both consumer demand and regulatory pressure to reduce e-waste.
But here’s the catch: you can’t refurbish what you can’t securely erase. Without certified data erasure, you face three equally bad options:
- Destroy the device (lose recovery value)
- Sell with data risk (regulatory liability, reputation damage)
- Outsource processing (erode margins, lose control)
None of these options scale.
What Proper Mac Processing Requires
Certified data erasure solutions for Apple Silicon must support processing without USB boot requirements, generate tamper-proof certificates, and comply with standards like NIST 800-88 and IEEE 2883:2022.
The technical requirements are specific:
- Full compatibility with M1/M2/M3/M4 and T2/T1 chips
- Automated workflows to eliminate manual bottlenecks
- Integration with asset management systems
- Cloud-based reporting for audit trails
- Scalability for bulk processing
The Choice Ahead
Apple’s manufacturing expansion in India means more Macs entering ITAD workflows than ever before. As enterprises upgrade their fleets and Apple Silicon becomes the standard, Mac volumes will only increase.
Indian ITADs face a choice: invest in certified Apple Silicon erasure capabilities now, or watch competitors capture the high-margin refurbishment revenue you’re currently destroying.
The Mac processing challenge isn’t going away. The question is whether your ITAD operation can keep up.