The movies often depict shredding to be one-dimensional: sensitive paper documents are hurriedly fed into the shredder before they can be read. This distorts how professional shredding actually works and why people used shredders.
In reality, just because a person shreds documents doesn’t mean they have something to hide, and the materials pro shredders destroy go way beyond paper. Keep reading to learn more about how the best Toronto paper shredding services work, including all the ways that local businesses are protected from threats like identity theft and fraud.
Paper Document Destruction
Every person and business accumulates documents in the course of being a citizen and a registered company which could harm them if they got into the wrong hands. If an identity thief or a corporate saboteur gathers enough sensitive information, they could use this information to undermine your business, drain your finances, or some other type of scam.
Here is a list of such common documents that are safer being professionally shredded:
Tax information
Bank records
Old contracts or business plans
Old marketing material
HR information
Papers with passwords on them
Any business or home that has such paper documents lying around is better off having them professionally shredded. For smaller volumes of paper documents to destroy, industry leaders have a mobile shredding truck that can shred it all right at your doorstep.
For larger loads, they can still come right to your premises but they’ll securely transport it to their facility, where they’ll be shredded. Either way, one phone call is all it takes to have paper liabilities destroyed, so you’ll never have to worry about hauling and transporting heavy boxes of paper.
Electronic Shredding
In an age of advanced technology, loads of sensitive information is stored on electronic devices. These devices can’t simply be thrown into the garbage: the device is only really eliminated once the microchips in them are pulverized, and the data can’t be recovered.
If there are electronics sitting around your home or office collecting dust, it’s safest to have them professionally shredded. Some electronics that pose data liabilities are obvious, but some may surprise you:
Old computers
Laptops
Tablets
Data tapes
Photocopier or printer memory cards
Flash drives or USBs
Professional shredders eliminate these devices so they can’t pose any liability, plus they also take pains to ensure all the components are recycled safely, helping companies reduce their carbon footprint.
Specialty Destruction
Finally, some sensitive information doesn’t take the form of paper or electronics. Still, it needs to be shredded before it gets into the wrong hands.
A list of such items includes:
Uniforms with logos
Labelling or packaging
Promotional items
Dental moulds and X-rays
ID cards
Access cards
Any sensitive information needs to be destroyed, and pro shredders can handle it all.
In a business climate where hacks and online security breaches are commonplace, it’s important that companies keep their cards as close to their chest as possible. If your home or office has sensitive information in any tangible form — such as paper, electronics, or unorthodox specialty destruction — hire a pro shredder today.
