There are many reasons why you might want to dispose of your documents, such as changing your address or obtaining a new passport. But what you may not realise is that these documents can be used to steal your identity. Read on to learn more about how document destruction protects your identity and what steps you need to take in order to properly dispose of your unwanted documents.
What Is Identity Theft?
Identity theft can happen to anyone—from celebrities to office workers. The term “identity theft” refers to a variety of crimes that occur when someone uses your personal information, such as your name, address, passport number, date and place of birth or credit card information to commit fraud.
People often use personal identification numbers (PIN) and personal identification codes (PINs) to protect themselves against identity theft. Unfortunately, these numbers and codes are also used to commit fraud against others.
An example of this would be when an employee steals another employee’s PIN and tries to use it at the bank. When they try their PIN number again online, it will show them a message saying that their account has been closed by the bank due to fraudulent activity.
Such instances are called “false positive” errors because the system thought there was legitimate activity taking place with your account, but in reality something else is happening.
Why Document Destruction Is Important
If you’ve ever had to dispose of an old piece of paper, you know that there are a lot of steps involved in the process. You need to make sure that you do it safely. There is no way to be sure that your documents won’t fall into the wrong hands. At this point, the only thing you can do is take precautions to keep them out of the wrong hands.
Document destruction is one way to help prevent identity theft and fraud. Documents can be tampered with or stolen, especially if they’ve been stored in a safe place, like a vault or other secure place where people can’t get at them easily. A document destruction company will remove all evidence as well as destroy any physical evidence (such as postage stamps), making it impossible for someone else to get at your documents without their knowledge or your knowledge.
DestroyR Secure Shredding can help
Cutting up your documents may seem like a waste of time, but it’s not. Your documents are still valuable to you. They’re the proof that you exist, and many people have tried to use your identity to commit crimes.
So what do you do with them? There are ways to dispose of your documents safely. A popular option is shredding — cutting up your documents so they’re so small that they can’t be found or used against you in any way. When disposing of your documents, make sure that the procedure is safe and secure at all times.
You don’t want to toss those important government documents into a landfill or trash can without proper disposal procedures in place. In some cases, there may even be legal restrictions on how long it should take before you can destroy certain types of paperwork.
Conclusion
When you need to get rid of a document or voucher, you want it to be as quick and easy as possible. By destroying your documents, you are able to dispose of these documents in a way that is convenient and secure for you. You can do this online or by visiting the local shredding service. The convenience is there but security is also crucial. If you have sensitive information in your business, you don’t want to risk losing it because of some careless mistake. With a shredding service like DestroyR Secure Shredding, you can get it done safely and securely.
