Can I Put My Documents to be Shredded in Plastic Bags?

The need for document destruction services has become evident and risen to staggering levels in the past couple decades.  This is, in large part, due to the hundreds of thousands of people falling victim to identity theft and fraud each year.

Document destruction companies make this service very easy for customers by offering on-site shredding, off-site shredding, and public shred events.  One of the things we can do to make these services go more smoothly is to put documents to be shredded in boxes rather than plastic bags.

What Time Will My Shredding Service Be Here?

Service providers generally work between the respectable hours of 8:00am to 5:00pm to give those receiving service some semblance of a normal workday.

Any cable, telephone, pool, or most any other service provider accommodate schedules by not only being there to service you between respectable hours, but possibly even giving you a smaller window of time during the day that they will be to your home to provide service.

If I Take My Documents to be Shredded, How Do I Know They Are Actually Destroyed?

Certified document destruction companies have standards and procedures in place that must be followed in order to be certified by the National Association for Information Destruction (NAID).

One of those policies is to provide each customer with a certificate of destruction to all customers who have sensitive information destroyed. 

Are Spiral-Bound Notebooks Acceptable In With My Shredding?

According to Cambridge.org, a spiral notebook is “a book of paper for writing that is held together by a wire that curves around and around through small holes at the edge of the paper.

Of course, the paper and the cardboard cover are recyclable, shredable items, but the metal spiral binding is questionable in both respects.

Can I Put Plastic Binders In With My Shredding?

Plastic spiral binding, also called comb binding, “is one of many ways to bind pages together into a book. This method uses round plastic spines with 19 rings (for US Letter size) or 21 rings (for A4 size) and a hole puncher that makes rectangular holes. Comb binding is sometimes referred to as plastic comb binding or spiral comb binding.”

Since these binders are made of plastic, some recycling centers will accept them in their recycling bins. Shredding them may be a bit of a different story.

Can I put Hanging File Folders In With My Material To Be Shredded?

The hanging folder has metal hooks on all four corners that slide over a rail. Hanging folders can be used to file one or more manila folders or can be used to put loose sheets directly into the hanging folders, themselves.

When documents need to be retrieved, the corresponding manila folder or paper is removed from the hanging folder, leaving hanging folder, itself, in its place on the rails.

Compliance...It's No Small Matter

August 1st, 2012 from the St. Louis Post Dispatch, “court documents containing personal information
of court respondents sat for weeks in a dumpster outside a Madison County building.”

August 2nd, 2012 from News Channel 7 in Spartanburg-Greenville, NC, “a tax preparer who closed her business three years ago says she unknowingly dumped boxes of records recently, some of which included personal information.”

Electronic Pickpocketing

How Do We Protect Ourselves From High-Tech Hackers?

According to the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, 72.1 percent of American consumers in the United States owned at least 1 credit card in 2012. Modern thieves can purchase powerful scanners for less than $100 that can wirelessly retrieve your credit card information from up to 25 feet away! If you’re not scared yet, for just $300 more, they can buy a device that replicates your credit card.

What Makes An Expert? Glad You Asked...

On my TV, it’s usually shows like ESPN, The Weather Channel, HGTV, Discovery Channel and WGN, if the Cubs are playing.  Well, that was until my two college sons came home this summer and now it’s more like Swamp People, Storage Wars, Ball Boys and Pawn Stars, at least when they’re home. 

One of the things that fascinates me is when an item is brought in for sale and nobody really knows what it’s worth…..until, they call in an expert.

How Do I Destroy Old Credit Cards?

By now, most people know that they should keep their important papers safe and some ways to keep documents containing sensitive information from inadvertently falling into the wrong hands.

Shredding personal documents is almost always the way to go…and the bigger the pile of shredded material to add it to, the better. But what about credit cards, themselves? 

Size Matters...Particle Size, That Is!

Well, in our economy, it's particle size to be specific. To quote a line from the 1889 read of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain; he writes, "She was wise, subtle and knew more than one way to skin a cat."

That is, more than one way to get the job done!

I will admit that there is indeed more than one way to destroy a document. Yes, you can bury it in a plastic bag in your backyard, let Mother Nature do her thing and hope it's never unearthed to become fodder for the next identity thief. 

What Happens To My Documents After They Are Shredded?

According to previous blogs, we know that using a professional document destruction service is
important for many reasons. But what happens to the shredded documents after they are destroyed?

The majority of shredded documents consist of what is know as white stock which is the most valuable type of recyclable paper material. White paper is an especially valuable commodity because it can most easily be recycled into new paper.

The Environmental Impact of Document Destruction

Many people have asked me over the years how recycling their shredded paper impacts the environment in a positive way.  Here is why that’s such a good question---we all know that the knowledge of a securely destroyed document is one bookend of the event, responsibly conserving our nation’s natural resources is the other.  

For example, when Integra Certified Document Destruction recently partnered with the Elkhart Chamber of Commerce and the Elkhart County Solid Waste Management District for the annual Clean Your Files Day, our goal for the 350 people that showed up was to provide the peace of mind that is inherent with destroying items like old files, tax records, cancelled checks and the like.   But, that’s only half of the story.

A Shred Of Evidence

A Los Angeles woman flew to Las Vegas, ate at one of the finest restaurants, gambled, and went on a shopping spree….all from the comfort of her own living room. How is this possible, you ask? She was the victim of identity theft.

Records show that 2 credit cards were opened in her name, and high-dollar items were ordered from the Internet, along with her bank accounts being all but wiped out.