Crimes such as business espionage and bank fraud are increasing by the day, with identity theft becoming very common. To protect personal and sensitive information pertaining to your home or business, document shredding is your only recourse. Stay one step ahead of the criminals!
It’s The Law!
With the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act or FACTA taking effect in June 1995, it has become a legal necessity for companies to employ a person exclusively for document destruction. Businesses are required to provide professionals with the necessary equipment for proper document disposal. The law was enacted to make sure that all business-related documents are discarded in the safest possible manner to eliminate any chance of identity theft. Not all businesses are aware of the compliance requirements of the FACTA Law. Fines under State law could go up to $1000, while the penalty under Federal Law could be around $2500, for violation and non-compliance.
What Do I Do Now?
Under these conditions, you should first purchase a small, in-house paper shredder. It could be used for limited shredding applications, such as a few bills or credit card communications received via mail. It is most suitable for private use, in the house or at a small office where there is a limited amount of paperwork involved. In a medium or large business organization, or even a small business that produces lots of paper, it is best to invest in professional shredding services.
Professional shredding services are provided both onsite and offsite. The onsite option is considered to be the safest, but when dealing with a shredding company with a good reputation, the offsite experience is just as safe.
Professional Shredding – Your Safest Option
In onsite shredding, the company sends a special truck to your business address. The shredding is done in the truck and you are able to monitor the whole process of the shredding through a camera. This gives you the satisfaction of knowing that every document has been completely destroyed. The truck arrives as per your scheduled arrangement with the shredding company, daily, weekly or on a monthly basis, depending on the volume of work. These companies also provide you with secured storage containers to store the documents meant for shredding, until the next scheduled shredding day. After every shredding, the company provides a shredding certificate called the ‘Certificate of Destruction’.
When you choose offsite shredding services, the company ideally provides you with a container, to place the documents meant for destruction. They lock the container when they come for collection. There are security cameras installed at the site that allow you to witness the whole shredding operation. In this case also, you are provided with a ‘Certificate of Destruction’ and a note stating the date and time of destruction, should you require it at some time in the future.
Keep Your Business Efficient
Among the many benefits that you stand to gain from by hiring professional shredding services, is the saving of payroll hours. Working hours can be productively utilized for core company functions instead of being wasted on shredding paper. Also, there is less consumption of the available office space to house the bulky shredding equipment and no machine maintenance cost involved. Paper clips, rubber bands, and folders need not be removed and this saves more time. The shredded material is recycled, which is environmentally friendly.