Confidential Document Destruction

The requirement for confidential document destruction by companies and organisations has steadily increased over the past few years due to the increase in publicity surrounding data theft and privacy.  Wherever a piece of paperwork has been produced that contains any kind of information, there is a risk that the data can be used by criminals if it has not been properly destroyed.

And with the price of waste paper falling in recent years, many waste disposal companies look to export waste office papers that they have collected on behalf of fee-paying customers to countries such as China or India for recycling.  The paper is not shredded before it leaves the UK and so there is a risk that the information contained in the paperwork can be compromised at any number of places en-route or at its final destination.

The same risk applies to paperwork that is recycled in the UK, of course.  If your documents have not been shredded after they have reached the end of their useful life, the information they contain can be obtained by a third party.

Confidential Document Destruction Proceedures

In principle, there are two requirements for complete document destruction. The process must:

1. Be carried out in a secure environment

Shredsec can enable you to achieve this in two ways:

1. On-site shredding

   You arrange for one of our shredding trucks to visit your premises at a pre-arranged time and date.  When the mobile shredding vehicle arrives, our operative will collect your documents and load them into the shredding machine that is on the lorry.  You can watch your material get shredded for complete peace of mind and we provide you with a Certificate of Destruction that details the weight of the destroyed paper.In terms of cost, this tends to be the most expensive method of shredding because of the fuel and equipment needed to carry out the work.  However, it is often a preferred choice for schools, medical practices and law firms as it means none of your documents leave your premises without being destroyed.

2. Off-site shredding

   The popular alternative to on-site shredding – and one that is preferred by most of Shredsec’s customers – is off-site shredding.  Instead of a shredding truck visiting you at a pre-arranged time and date, one of our collection vans will arrive.  The driver will load your boxes/bags/sacks into the van and return to our secure shredding unit where the documents will be shredded.  This is always carried out on the same day as collection so there is no risk of the data contained in your paperwork getting compromised.

   This option is cheaper than on-site shredding and Shredsec can often collect from you within 24 hours of your phone call depending on the size and nature of the material you wish to shred.

2. Provide absolute destruction

Both options outlined above provide a high level of destruction for your papers.  Our shredding machines operate a level 3 security meaning that papers are cross-cut into pieces measuring approximately 8x40mm.  Compare this with a conventional strip-cut office or home shredder which produces pieces that can easily contain bank, credit card and other important numbers.

Shredsec are experts in providing confidential document destruction.  You can contact us using the different options on the right of the page or through our special contact page.