8 Documents You Should be Shredding but Aren't

While protecting and shredding confidential documents, is an increasingly standard workplace policy, many seemingly-innocent documents are often forgotten. But these documents can contain highly confidential information.

Here are the top documents you may not be shredding and should be: 

Boarding passes

Bar codes on boarding passes contain contact information, travel plans, and even frequent flyer account numbers. Never leave paper boarding passes in public places such as the seat pockets in airplanes. Bring them back to the office for secure shredding. Alternatively, use an electronic boarding pass.

Shipping labels

Address labels on packages potentially include confidential information such as business address, tracking codes, and account numbers. Employees in the mail room should be directed to always remove and securely dispose of these labels before boxes or packages are broken down and recycled.  

Junk mail

It's a myth that junk mail is harmless. Personal data is often included in this correspondence. For example, names and addresses are inserted into pre-approved credit card applications; identity thieves could send in these applications. Always shred junk mail; never put it into the garbage or recycling bin. 

Photos

Photos of employees, customers and suppliers used in company communications should be securely shredded instead of tossed into the garbage. Even if thieves can’t completely steal an identity with a photo, they can make one up.

Post-it notes

Any record of confidential information has to be protected and securely destroyed when no longer needed. For example, many people record passwords and account numbers on post-it notes.

Receipts

Receipts used for business expenses can contain personal and/or corporate financial information. But they’re often left sitting out on desks – making them accessible to fraudsters. Protect this information from prying eyes by having it securely shredded.

Hiring information

When people apply for jobs they usually leave a hard copy of their resume and other information. Keep printed resumes in a locked location, and shred when no longer needed.

Pay stubs

Pay stubs can contain a lot of confidential data (for example, health care provider and banking account number) and must be protected.

A reputable and professional document destruction company will provide a secure chain of custody for document shredding, demonstrating a clear commitment to information security to employees, customers and suppliers. The company will also issue a Certificate of Destruction, which is a record of what’s been shredded in the event of an audit or compliance-related lawsuit.

Implement a Shred-it All Policy and a Clean Desk Policy to help guarantee that all confidential information is protected through its lifetime and securely destroyed when no longer needed.

Start Protecting Your Business 

To learn more about how Shred-it can protect your documents and hard drives, please contact us to get a free quote and security risk assessment.