How and When Do You Shred Your Confidential Documents?

Each day within your office, confidential files are retrieved, shared and re-filed. A fair amount of these documents will eventually need to be disposed of. Unfortunately, the final disposition of records is problematic for many businesses. Either expired records sit idly well beyond their required retention periods, or employees are negligent in their disposal practices. Although many companies utilize consumer-grade shredding equipment to facilitate in-house disposal of files and documents containing private information, this method is not secure, cost-effective or efficient.

Why Your Present Shredding Method Falls Short

The typical shredding machine can only shred a small amount of paperwork in one session. Prior to shredding, paper clips and staples must be removed from files to prevent damage to shredding blades. Even then, paper jams are frequent. Blades must be frequently oiled and unclogged. The shredding receptacle requires constant emptying. At the end of the process, shredded material is bagged and typically ends up in dumpsters-which have become prime targets for the theft of confidential business information.

While sitting in a dumpster, inadequately shredded material containing social security numbers, financial data, and other personally identifiable information can easily be reconstructed. Many thieves don’t even have to go through the trouble of doing so, as whole confidential documents are often lazily tossed by employees in effort to avoid the time-consuming process of using a shredding machine. Often, no-longer-needed files containing sensitive information don’t make it to a dumpster, instead ending up on top of desks where they’re easily be exposed to various prying eyes-from visitors to fellow co-workers.

Disposal of Business Documents Should be Controlled and Efficient

A corporate information destruction program should make it easy for employees to securely dispose of business documents. Eliminating the time required to shred confidential documents allows employees to focus on other important, revenue-generating tasks. Additionally, a solution that offers a documented process for ensuring sensitive information is disposed of and thoroughly shredded reduces the following risks:

• potential legal discovery of expired data
• failed internal audits
• non-compliance with privacy protection regulations

Businesses can prove their information destruction due diligence by utilizing the services of a professional shredding and destruction solution provider. The right vendor will offer a thorough assessment of your business information disposal needs and apply a tailored solution that may incorporate the following services:

• off-site shredding
• on-site mobile shredding
• media and hard drive destruction
• one-time destruction purges

Home-based business owners and the self-employed may be able to take advantage of drop off shredding services. In contrast to internally handled information disposal methods, professional destruction offers the following:

• documented chain of custody processes
• industrial-grade shredding to 1/32″ x 1/2″ particle size
• Certificate of Destruction
• post-shredding recycling
• HIPAA, FACTA, SOX, and GLB-compliant disposal

Records Management Center provides businesses throughout Augusta, Evans, Thomson, and Martinez, GA, Aiken, SC and the Central Savannah River Area with professional shredding and information destruction solutions. To find out more please contact us by phone or fill in the form on this page.