8 Document Shredding Facts You Need to Know

Living in the digital age has made fact-checking easier, and in many cases, even more necessary. If you are regularly shredding documents to remain legally compliant with data privacy laws—or want to be—think about some of these document shredding facts.

Fact 1: 1 in 5 Data Breaches Involve Paper Records

Identity theft and fraud can easily start with paper information due to lost wallets, mail theft, or paper documents being retrieved from the garbage, for example. Identity thieves will painstakingly reconstruct torn-up pieces of paper to get information. Even if it seems worthless to you, they can piece together bits of information to create a payday for themselves by accessing your bank accounts, credit cards, healthcare information, social security account, and much more.

Fact 2: Your Discarded Documents Are Someone Else’s Treasure

In many states, once your papers have been left for the garbage collection truck, they are public property and anyone can dig through your garbage without breaking the law.

Unfortunately, there have been countless cases where “dumpster divers” have used this fact to steal information and use it illegally. Even if your area has a law against dumpster diving, that doesn’t mean that your information won’t be stolen. After all, thieves don’t abide by the law.

Fact 3: DIY Shredding Is More Expensive Than You Think

Outsourcing your document shredding is more affordable than a DIY approach. You might assume DIY shredding is cheaper, but once you add up the expenses of having your skilled employees spend hours using slow-running shredders, clearing jams, waiting for the overheated shredder to cool down, dealing with breakdowns, emptying the shredding receptacle and disposing of the shredded paper, it starts to become obvious that outsourcing your shredding to the experts is the better option.

Add to that the fact that office shredders provide you with no proof of your compliance with state and local data privacy laws, such as the Certificate of Destruction provided by a reputable shredding company. When the auditor comes knocking, the legal and financial ramifications of noncompliance—or the simple lack of proof that you are compliant—could be extremely costly.

Fact 4: Chain of Custody is Key

Shredding collection containers are a vital part of staying compliant. You might have your whole document chain of custody sealed tight from the time you generate information to when you discard it, but where are those documents sitting until they are destroyed? Are they vulnerable to being seen, lost, or stolen? A locked shred collection container fills that gap so your papers can be stored safely until they are wheeled out to be shredded. When used correctly, this method keeps your sensitive information under tight security from start to finish.

Fact 5: NAID AAA Certified is Best

A NAID AAA Certified paper shredding company is worth choosing because, to be certified, the company must fulfill high level security requirements set forth by i-SIGMA, the standard-setting body for the information destruction industry. Certification includes regular, unannounced audit by a third-party information security professional checking chain of custody, shredding process, employee backgrounds, insurance coverage, and more.

Using a NAID AAA Certified company gives you confidence that your documents are safe outside of your premises.

Fact 6: Outsourced Shredding is Faster

Mobile shredding is fast. If you just finished a purge of your files and want them shredded quickly, a mobile shredding company can shred in minutes what would take your employees hours or days. And don’t worry about removing staples, paperclips, rubber bands, binder clips, or file folders. Industrial shredding equipment can shred those with no problem.

Fact 7: All Shredded Paper Should Be Recycled

A reputable shredding company will recycle 100% of your shredded material. Through your partnership with them, you will be protecting the environment and keeping the paper out of landfill.

Fact 8: Certificate of Destruction Is Your Proof of Compliance

A reputable shredding company will provide a Certificate of Destruction upon completion as proof that your files were securely destroyed according to HIPAA, FERPA, SOX, and FACTA.

Apex Shredding provides NAID AAA Certified mobile shredding services to the businesses and residents of Northern Colorado. Call us at call at 907-532-5007 with your questions or to book service. Our friendly shredding experts are standing by!