Surprising Facts
Information security in the workplace is more important today than ever before and it includes more than simply cyber threats. The majority of office employees are still using thousands of sheets of paper each year, averaging to about 45 sheets of paper per day. Paper is not going away anytime soon, so it’s crucial that companies are doing everything possible to secure sensitive business documents.
What are you doing with old information when it’s no longer required? Unfortunately, some companies think that performing shredding in-house through the use of a shredding machine is the most convenient approach. Assigning employees to “shred” documents during their work hours isn’t exactly productive, though, is it?
In-house document shredding not only lacks in security, it’s also significantly more costly than it is to outsource this task. While it may involve more hidden fees, they will cost your company more in the end. Let’s take a look at some of the financial (and other costs) to your business, associated with in-house shredding:
Human Error: When in-house shredding is carried out, employees are left making the decision as to how confidential each piece of information might be and whether it requires shredding or no; the problem with that is there are any mistakes made, it could lead to costly breaches.
Alternative Option: Hire an experienced document shredding provider that also supplies locked containers, for safe and secure storage of documents prior to disposal. Security trained professionals will collect and remove your documents for either on-site or off-site shredding.
In-effective: Office shredders are typically considered strip shredders; this means they are the least secure because strips can quickly and very easily, be reassembled. Shredding in-house is also substantial work, as paper needs to be fed into the shred machine by hand, and unlike with professional shredding, it is necessary that all staples and clips are removed first.
Alternative Option: Companies in Ponemon’s 2014 Security of Paper Records & Document Shredding study claims it’s far more efficient to hire an outside company to conduct the destruction process. A professional document destruction provider is equipped with the necessary crosscut shredding technology that ensures all paper is shred into confetti-sized pieces. At SAFESHRED, we offer different options for your shredding needs, so that shredding can be carried out according to your specific needs and industry requirements.
Internal Fraud: In-house shredding can increase your risk of internal fraud. The 2015 Insider Threat Report from Vormetrics revealed that globally, up to 89% of organizations believe they are vulnerable to internal/insider attacks.
Alternative Option: A third-party shredding company offers a secure chain of custody and scheduled paper shredding options. Through the use of locked consoles and containers, once documents are placed inside, they cannot be retrieved until they are collected for destruction. Considering a “Shred-All” policy will also help substantially.
Non-compliance: Privacy legislation mandates document disposal with fines for non-compliance. Many companies that use in-house shredding, lack a proper verification process which can lead to several issues.
Alternative Option: A professional shredding partner such as SAFESHRED will supply your business with a Certificate of Destruction after every shred. In fact, close to half of the respondents in Ponemon’s study outsourced their document destruction because it offered peace of mind that they were in compliance with privacy regulations. A Clean Desk Policy is another critical aspect of a document security plan to protect sensitive documents from landing into the wrong hands.
Call SAFESHRED today at 1-800-987-4733 to discuss your shredding requirements, with one of helpful and experienced shred specialists.
