Top 8 Reasons to Shred your Documents

Paper shredding and document destruction is very important this day and age. There are serious dangers to not properly disposing of your documents in a secure fashion. The following is a list of reasons why you should shred your confidential documents.

1. Identity Theft:
According to a recent article written by MSN, identity theft affects 11 million people a year, at a cost of $54 billion. In order to avoid becoming a statistic shredding is imperative, and hiring a shredding service, like Mobile Record Shredders will help you dispose of your confidential documents safely and securely.

2. Old Tax Returns:
Most people save their tax returns in the chance that they get audited. After three years of returns you are free to throw them away. Tax information has confidential information included on it and after three years can be adequately disposed of.

3. Old Photo IDs:
If you like to save your IDs, such as college IDs, security badges from old employers or even old state IDs, consider using a document destruction service to shred them. While photo IDs alone aren’t enough to steal your identity, the information included on the ID could be used against you in a larger scheme.

4. Bank Statements:
Any documents that include bank account numbers should be properly disposed of and shredded. This includes paper bank statements, old bank statements, and anything with your personal or company banking information included on it.

5. Credit Card Offers:
When you receive generic bank offers in the mail, including credit card offers, or new account offers, and you are not planning to take the bank up on their offer, you should dispose of the offers right away. The priority is to make sure identity thieves do not open new cards in your name.

6. Canceled or Void Checks:
Even if you write “void” on a check, it doesn’t mean the information on cannot be used against you. The bank routing number and account numbers listed on the check are just as easy to steal even if it says void. Make sure to shred all void or canceled checks upon cancelation to avoid any problems with identity thieves.

7. Pay Stubs:
At first glance, pay stubs seem harmless, but they do contain critical information that can be used by an identity thief. Some pay stubs include financial institution information and account information, Make sure to dispose of them properly.

8. Convenience Checks:
Have you ever received one of those blank checks from your credit card company, which you can use to borrow against your credit line? Thos are called convenience checks. If these checks end up in the wrong hands you could obviously be in trouble. Make sure to properly dispose of these checks so the information stays safe against identity thieves.

Shredding documents is not only for large companies with something to hide, average people have documents at home that include information that identity thefts pray on, including documents that include social security numbers and bank information. Make sure these documents are shredded properly. Mobile Record Shredders is here to help. Visit our website, for more information about document destruction with Mobile Record Shredders.

A Breakdown of Our Services

At Mobile Record Shredders, we do not tread lightly on the topic of confidentiality. We have tailored our service offerings to make it easy for you to take part in our document destruction offerings and keep your information confidential. Below is a breakdown of what we can offer you:

One-Time: Bulk Clean-out Shredding Services

On-Going: Regularly Scheduled Shredding Services

Shred Drop Off Locations:

We offer drop off locations in Pueblo, Colorado Springs, Monument, Canon City, Lamar, and La Junta for those that have smaller document destruction needs.

Call us or chat with an online representative today about your shredding needs.

Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.

When it comes down to it, Mobile Record Shredders alleviates the hassle and is the most cost effective solution to your document destruction and confidentiality needs, while providing a green and environmental friendly solution for document destruction.

In the document destruction process, millions of pounds of paper are shredded each year. We have many customers asking us what we do with all of the documents we destroy. The answer is, we recycle. Not only do we recycle the documents destroyed, but it allows our customers to also be green and recycle by using our secure document destruction services. Recycling and being green is a good feature for all.

At Mobile Record Shredders, we are committed to recycling all documents shredded using our secure document destruction service. 100% of our products (including the paper shredded using our services) are shredded, bailed, and most importantly recycled. One bale, otherwise known as 1,000 pounds of shredded paper, when recycled translates to the following green practices:

Due to our recycling efforts, including partnering with Blue Star Recyclers to increase our document destruction recycling efforts, Mobile Record Shredders has created well over $7.5 million in value savings to the environment since 2004. We think that’s pretty impressive when you are referring to document destruction services.

Knowing the impact that paper usage has on the environment, but translating that impact into positive recycling efforts is important to us and we know it’s important to you too. Let us take your document destruction needs and turn them into an environmentally friendly experience.

Learn more  about the benefits of Mobile Record Shredders and how we can help your business with recycling and your document destruction.

Your Trash is an Identity Thieves Treasure.

Did you know, the minute your trash bin hits the curb, anything in it is legally there for the taking? Most people don’t realize this when they through their credit card statements, or confidential documents in the trash.  According to law, once you place that pail or bag at your curb, you are giving up any expectation of privacy to its contents. This means anyone, looking to find confidential information is able to rifle through your garbage with no questions asked.

What is done with that trash once it leaves your location is an entirely different matter. Identity thieves can commit fraud in multiple ways, basically whatever ultimately makes them money. Almost any identifying data, such as birth dates, social security numbers, and even a mobile phone number can be used to commit identity theft. Identity theft now occurs in as regularly as one in three people within the United States and this number continues to grow.

Proper destruction of sensitive information is the key to stopping this growing epidemic. Luckily with Mobile Record Shredders, this can easily be accomplished. Whether it be dropping off your confidential documents, or requesting a pick up service for your company, we are here to destroy the most sensitive information you have.

Any trash that includes identifying data should be properly destroyed. As you now know, it only takes one identity thief going through your trash to have your confidential information compromised. Even something that seems as small as your name and address can be used against you to commit identity theft.

Shred today! Contact us for more information at 719-544-5460 or live chat with one of our representatives on our website. We are here to help you with your document destruction needs.

Top Items to Shred!

We’ve listed them before but we cannot stress enough what you should shred.
See a comprehensive list of the top 20 items you should shred in the list below.

  1. Legal documents

  2. Payroll records

  3. Financial records

  4. Payroll records

  5. New product proposals

  6. Magnetic media (tapes, disks, CD’s or anything storing electronic data)

  7. Account records

  8. Medical records

  9. Class Rosters

  10. Maps and blueprints

  11. Inventory lists

  12. Confidential correspondence (such as letters, emails, etc.)

  13. Customer lists and estimates

  14. Invoices

  15. Outdated business records

  16. Tax records

  17. Credit and ID Cards

  18. Microfilm and fiche

  19. Price Lists

  20. Cancelled checks

  21. Junk Mail (this is overlooked quite often)

The Brief History of Paper Shredding

Shredding History Mobile Record Shredders

Do you know the history of shredding? Well if not, here is a quick run down on how it all started.

The very first shredder was invented in Piercefiled, New York by inventor Abbot Augusts Lowe in 1909. His invention consisted of a “waste paper receptacle” that was created to improve the way paper was disposed of. He filed a patent for it, but his product was never actually manufactured.

Move forward to 1935, Adolf Ehinger manufactured a “hand-crank pasta maker” in Germany. Where he used it to shred documents during World War II. He later converted the hand-crank to an electric motor and marketed it as a paper shredder to government agencies and financial institutions. In 1959 his company also manufactured the first cross-cut paper shredder and continues to do so under the company name EBA Krug & Priester GmbH & Co.

It was rare for individuals or smaller companies to use paper shredders until the mid-1980s. Shredders were generally still only used by government agencies and financial institutions until this time. After the California vs. Greenwood Supreme Court ruling in 1988, that states the Fourth Amendment does not prohibit the warrantless search and seizure of garbage left for collection outside of the home, shredders started becoming more popular among concerned patrons and companies alike. Privacy concerns were high and identity theft cases continue to rise.

And with that historical summary, make sure to shred important documents. Mobile Record Shredders is here to help. Find out more on our services page  or contact us today.

The Shredding Process

Nothing will be left readable after our shredders get ahold of your documents.

We pride ourselves on our highly professional, reliable, and confidential document destruction services.  Whether you are a one-time customer or have a regularly scheduled service at your business, our service is mobile allowing for convenience wherever you need it.

Our shredding process is highly secure. All materials are destroyed on-site and not handled by company representatives. Documents are dumped into a secure destruction container, and then placed directly into the shredder for destruction. Scheduled service accounts have on-site locked containers with regularly scheduled pick up times.

Our state-of-the-art shredding equipment makes it nearly impossible to reassemble and out of the way of harms way. Our trucks are highly efficient and get the job done quickly allowing customers to return to their routine with minimal interruption.

Click here for more information about our services.

What Companies Should Look For When Hiring a Shredding Service

Companies often will not hire a document destruction service because of price or security, but at Mobile Record Shredders we are National Association for Information Destruction (NAID) certified, which means we are serious about what we do. We follow standards and procedures outlined by NAID to continue our certification and make sure your document destruction needs are in compliance with not only national document destruction laws, but also NAID standards.

When looking for a shredding service, you will want to look for a service that is NAID certified, but you will also want to consider the following:

1. Expertise in Compliance
It is important that the mobile shredding company that you hire is the expert in legislative policies and compliance requirements needed by your business. Through our compliance expertise, at Mobile Record Shredders, we can offer you shredding solutions that will keep you amenable with the existing legislation. We are knowledgeable of all restrictions and legislature involving document destruction or paper shredding.

2. Recycling
Make sure to hire a mobile shredding company that understands and recognizes the importance of recycling and the impact that shredding has on the environment. By hiring an environmentally friendly shredding company that advocates recycling, not only helps to save the environment, but it is also good corporate responsibility on the part of your company. At Mobile Record Shredders, we recycle 100% of the documents that are destroyed. Let us take your document destruction needs and turn them into an environmentally friendly experience.

3. Security
The company you hire should be contracted for its compliance and security. They should have a deep understanding in security measures particularly because document destruction is a protected process. At Mobile Record Shredders, not only does our NAID certification ensure we are as secure as possible, we also shred on the spot to ensure there is no opportunity for confidential information to go elsewhere. Confidentiality is our top priority.

Whether you are on the verge of hiring a mobile record shredding service, or you are looking into more information on Mobile Record Shredders, know that we are the top of the line. We are secure, knowledgeable and NAID certified. Learn more  about the benefits of Mobile Record Shredders and how we can help your business with recycling and your document destruction.