WHY YOU SHOULD SHRED YOUR OBSOLETE DOCUMENTS

There is a lot of waste that can be classed as confidential waste. Documents or devices that contain data about customers, supplier and employee paperwork are all confidential and should be disposed of correctly, also data that includes any form of financial data, business plans, branding and marketing strategies is also waste that must be disposed of securely. Disposal of confidential waste has become an integral part of operations for many businesses today. It’s the simplest way to protect sensitive business data and could be essential for ensuring legal compliance. If you don’t yet have a shredding system in place – or a reliable shredding partner – here are some good reasons why it’s time to start shredding your obsolete documents.

Shredding ensures your business is compliant

The key piece of legislation here is the GDPR, which arrived in 2018 and introduced significant penalties for businesses not properly protecting data. It’s now essential for any organisation to have processes in place that ensure effective destruction of anything that contains data, whether that’s staff names and email addresses or customer bank details – shredding is the most effective way to comply.

One in five data breaches still involves paper

Identity theft and fraud are most likely to result from paper thefts but it doesn’t end there. Information such as passwords, personal data and IP addresses discarded in documents can help to facilitate a digital data breach too. Total destruction is guaranteed. The shredding process is one that leaves no room for documents to be reassembled and for data to be mined from them. Every document is shredded into very small pieces pieces at high speed. Working with a shredding partner will ensure that your obsolete documents are quickly dealt with on a regular basis and not sitting around leaving the business vulnerable.

Shredding extends beyond just documents

While shredding is the best option for your obsolete documents it doesn’t stop there – you can also use it for textiles, hard drives, USB sticks or SIMs so that no one can get hold of the data that these may contain and use it against the business or to mine data from. A clear audit trail. Shredding with a reliable shredding partner such as Flexible Storage, will provide you with certified proof that document destruction has taken place. You will be able to show a clear audit trail when it comes to obsolete documents, whether that is for the purposes of compliance, investigation or demonstrating improved corporate social responsibility.

Options for a more cost-effective approach

If you work with an on-site shredding partner then you can minimise your operational expenses when it comes to data destruction. Your internal resources and people are freed up to add value elsewhere and you don’t need to factor any of the costs of shredding internally into your budget.

Improving environmental commitment

All confidential waste is shredded and sent to licensed UK-only paper mills to be recycled into tissue and other paper products. Zero per cent of our waste is sent to landfill. For every tonne of paper waste recycled, approximately 17 trees are saved. Meaning that you can improve your green commitments considerably simply by working with a shredding partner able to ensure that your shredding waste is disposed of in a sustainable way.

Shredding your obsolete documents makes a lot of sense, not just in terms of cost savings and improving security but also when it comes to ensuring that the business is legally compliant and demonstrating environmental commitments too. Our service is here to help provided secure disposal the minute we leave your premises. We provide a range of services, from secure document shredding to confidential waste disposal bins, we have the knowledge and experience to ensure all of your confidential documents and items are securely destroyed in compliance with data protection. Find out more about our shredding services by calling the team today on 0800 652 1117 or alternatively you can request an online quote here.

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