Shredding Service , Document Destruction, Shredder

Michican Company Not Shredding

IDTheftAlerts — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 16:30:00 +0000

Affordable Realty was recently evicted from their offices and the landlord proceeded to throw all of their files into the trash. The files contained the sensitive information from the customers of Affordable Realty including bankruptcy statements, financial records, Social Security numbers and addresses.

While I can all appreciate that the landlord must have lost rent while Affordable Realty went into default; they shouldn't have exposed all those people to identity theft. A shredding service could have shredded it all for very little money and they would have saved the money of moving it themselves. Once they took procession of the space the took over the responsibility to protect the contents.

See the video.

Shredding in Cleveland

IDTheftAlerts — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 22:57:00 +0000

Another mortgage company has gone bankrupt and left their customers information in the trash. Union Mortgage recently closed it's doors for failing to pay taxes. They then threw all of their private files into the dumpster in the back.

It is hard for a consumer to see if a mortgage company is paying their taxes but if you trust your personal information you should make sure they have a shredding service. That is the only way to know that your identity is shredded instead of piled up and then thrown away.

Mobile Shredder

IDTheftAlerts — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 14:56:00 +0000

I came across an add for a fellows "mobile shredder" this morning. Wow I thought, if fellows making a real shredder now instead of just the toy ones? No, what they call a mobile shredder is just one of their toy shredders with four wheels jammed in the bottom. Our copy machine has four wheels but I doubt you would advertise it as a "mobile copier."

The best part is the price. For an office model it is only 1,273.99 at buy.com. $1,273.99! Are you kidding? For that price a service will come out and shred years worth of material. Now add in the $24,000 in labor costs when you shred in-house and fellows should be paying you to take it. As we head into a downturn do you really want a full time shredding person on payroll?

So sit back and enjoy your "mobile office chair" on the beautiful February day.

Shredders at Office Max

IDTheftAlerts — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 00:12:00 +0000

Beware to anyone buying a shredder at Office Max. Apparently none of the models they sell actually shred paper. This became obvious after it was discovered that Office Max in Naples throws old job applications with social security numbers, addresses, and other personal information into a dumpster behind the store.

If you buy a shredder and hope people assign themselves the extra job of shredding you are a fool. Here was a store with hundreds of shredders sitting around, and not the small ones but the big ones that cost hundreds of dollars, and yet they couldn't be troubled with actually doing the job.

The only document destruction program that is effective is a shredding service that comes by regularly and provides the business with documentation that it was all shredded..

Shredding in Seattle

IDTheftAlerts — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 17:55:00 +0000

Steve Gillett was shocked at what he found behind the office of Visa Services Northwest. Not just personal information of the businesses clients but his own documents. He found papers including his name, social security number, credit card information and even a copy of his signature.

If I was to read into this story I would say Steve was mad with the company and was looking through the trash in an effort to harm the company. And his efforts paid off when he found information the law requires a business to shred. He then called the local media and the Attorney General.

The companies owner, Xiaoli Ding said this was an isolated incident and the company shreds personal information and shreds the rest. They have since moved to shredding everything.

Kudos to Visa Services Northwest for introducing a much better document destruction program. This highlights the dangers of a poorly designed program. Your enemies are always looking for you to make a mistake with what you shred. And do you really want your lowest level employees making the decision about what should be shredded? For the low cost of a paper shredding service the approach of shred everything is the only prudent option.

One Dumpster Reveals Two Caches of Files

IDTheftAlerts — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 16:09:00 +0000

Channel 2 in Fort Myers recently took a look into a dumpster behind Dr. James Barringer's office. What they found were his patient files with full name, address and social security numbers. When Dr. Barringer was contacted he came out to the dumpster and dug out his patient files and said it was a mistake and the person responsible would be fired. Clearly Dr. Barringer understood that he was in violation of HIPAA. However, he didn't take the reasonable precaution of hiring a shredding service but instead used the "head in sand" approach.

The story doesn't end there. Channel 2 then found the files from the office of Lucille Adgate, a Certified Public Accountant. They were tax records that contained her clients personal information. She was notified and then came out to dig out her files. Apparently she doesn't just share a dumpster with Dr. Barringer but also his failed document destruction plan.

Two more professionals who could have protected their clients, been in compliance with the law, and avoided the negative press for the few dollars a shredding service would cost. Instead they purchased a small shredder and rolled the dice.

Read the full article, sorry no video for this one.

Shredding in Mesa

IDTheftAlerts — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 16:00:00 +0000

If you have ever done business or worked at the U-Care Thrift store in Mesa you might want to keep a close eye on your credit report. The reason is that the store was recently discovered to have boxes of employment applications sitting behind their location. And how was this discovered? Joe Torres found copies of drivers licenses blowing down the alley as he was donating clothes.

This is not only a violation of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act (FACTA) but an Arizona law that requires businesses to destroy records containing employees’ personal information. However, the penalty is a paltry $100 fine for a first violation and only $1,000 for a second.

The owner said that they shred everything but clearly that is not the case. Just another example where a few dollars for a shredding service would have saved the business and the employees.

New York Shredding Problems

IDTheftAlerts — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 15:23:00 +0000

Continuing the recent trend of governments that don't respect the privacy of their employees and constituents, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority threw the personal information of their employees in the trash. Workers at a Queens bus depot discovered reams of their claim forms in the dumpster.

I hate to sound like a broken record but when you leave the shredding to employees they will take the easy way out and just throw it in the dumpster and hope no one finds them. With New York being the center of freegans, this is bad bet.

Legal Document Shredding

IDTheftAlerts — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 15:48:00 +0000

The Berkowitz and Pace Law Firm has a unique legal document shredding policy. Apparently it is to set the legal files of their clients on the curb and let passersby do the shredding. It would concern me if my lawyer not only showed so little concern for my privacy but also did not know that trash on the curb is public property since the Supreme Court ruled on California V. Greenwood in 1988.

Maybe charging $150 per hour isn't enough to cover the couple of dollars per box to have a shredding service come out and properly destroy the documents. Shame on you Berkowitz and Pace Law Firm.

Hamilton Townships Not Shredding

IDTheftAlerts — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 22:53:00 +0000

Mike Leming was surprised when he visited the local recycling center in Hamilton. While recycling his newspaper he found 20 boxes of township documents. Mike didn't know what exactly was on the documents but it was apparent that they should have been shredded and not just dumped at the recycling center.

Add the Hamilton Township to the list of organizations whose document destruction program involves throwing papers into the recycle bin and then hoping that they simply aren't discovered. Most likely they had to pass the small shredder that froze up years ago.

McAllen Business Not Shredding

IDTheftAlerts — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 00:15:00 +0000

While searching through a dumpster to find some moving boxes Esther Taylor made a shocking discovery. What she found were boxes containing social security numbers, bank account information, and medical records. The files were from Del Sol day care center Casa (video).

When the owner says their policy is to shred any sensitive information. I think a more accurate statement is "we have a little shredder and expect our employees to assign themselves the extra job of paper shredding." I like to call this the "head in sand" approach to document destruction.

New York Document Destruction Liscense

IDTheftAlerts — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 15:39:00 +0000

New York is the first state to begin a licensing program for document destruction companies. Beginning in October contractors must pay $50 annually and provide proof of no criminal record.

The state is walking a fine line. While we support the idea of preventing criminals from setting up fraudulent document destruction companies; we don't want to see the requirements become so onerous that their main purpose is to prevent new companies from entering the market. With large companies looking to consolidate the industry it is these new entrants that keep the market competitive and prices reasonable for the consumer.

Texas AG Files Suit Against Select Medical Corporation

IDTheftAlerts — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 15:44:00 +0000

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has filed a lawsuit against Pennsylvania based Select Medical Corporation. The company ran a rehabilitation service in Levelland, Texas. Apparently the Select Medical document destruction plan was to throw all their customers personal information into their dumpster and hope nobody looked inside.

"We are seeking an injunction against Select Medical to prevent them from ever disclosing personal information like this again, as well as seeking penalties of up to $50,000 per violation," Abbott said. Throwing personal medical information into the trash is a violation of HIPAA as well as Texas' Texas Identity Theft Protection Act passed in 2005.

Albuquerque Documents in Dumpster

IDTheftAlerts — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 17:23:00 +0000

Dr. Alexander, an Albuquerque chiropractor, is the latest business caught dumping private customer information into the trash. His dumpster had files containing his patients name, social security numbers, and birth dates. This is in violation of HIPAA laws regarding the proper disposal of customer records.

Apparently Dr. Alexander's policy of buying a shredder and hoping his employees assign themselves extra work came to the same end as every other person who has tried it. If you don't pay a manager to witness the shredding you need to hire a shredding service. The third option is to get ready for local news to show up with cameras an embarrassing questions.

Miami Paper Shredding

IDTheftAlerts — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 21:11:00 +0000

Today Shred Nations announced the addition of Unishred to the largest network of shredding contractors in North America. Unishred has its primary locations in Miami and Dallas but can provide shredding to locations across the country. Their ShredTrack system offers instant access to the a companies shredding history.

If you need paper shredding in Miami, Ft Lauderdale, Palm Beach or anywhere else in Florida visit Shred Nations for quotes.

Western Slope Shredder

IDTheftAlerts — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 21:35:00 +0000

Shred Nations has a new shredder in Colorado and we don't mean a snow boarder. Paper Wise is the latest addition to the Shred Nations network of shredding services. Paper Wise serves ski country and the western slope with mobile service. If you are lucky enough to live where you play then Paper Wise can help you out with your document destruction need.

To get a quote for the western slope or anywhere else in Colorado visit Shred Nations.

FTC Issues FACTA Disposal Rule Fine

IDTheftAlerts — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 21:12:00 +0000

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced a settlement with Northbrook, Illinois-based American United Mortgage Company over a Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act (FACTA) disposal rule violation. American United Mortgage threw credit reports of their customers into an un-secured dumpster. The company has agreed to pay a fine of $50,000.

According to the FTC complaint American United Mortgage was found to have thrown credit reports in March of 2006. The company was notified in writing about the violation. In at least two subsequent investigations, the company continued to throw out credit reports in the same dumpster.

Two things strike me about this story. Why does it take three violations before the FTC decides to protect consumers information? American United is very bad at math. If the had hired a shredding service they would have paid a few hundred dollars. If they would have shredded in-house they would have paid a few thousand dollars in labor and shredders. But now they are paying fifty thousand dollars in fines. Just not good business sense.

Baton Rouge Shredding Service

IDTheftAlerts — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 16:05:00 +0000

Shred Nations has expanded their shredding service options in Baton Rouge and Lafayette with the addition of ShredMasters. ShredMasters offers shredding for paper, xrays and magnetic media. With a fleet of high speed mobile shredders they come to your location to perform the document destruction.

If you are a business in Baton Rouge or Layfayette who doesn't want to risk the bad publicity of documents showing up in your dumpster then give ShredMasters a call. You can also use the Shred Nations system to get a quote today.

Not Shredding Leads to Burglar Ring

IDTheftAlerts — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 21:27:00 +0000

An easy way to find who is on vacation is to spot the newspapers piling up in the driveway. Most homeowners put a freeze on the newspaper to prevent this security risk.

However, if you get the San Francisco Chronicle the opposite might be true. Delivery people for the paper were throwing the vacation notice slips in the dumpster where they pick up the papers. A burglary ring was pulling out the slips out and then targeting the vacationing homeowners.

This is another example is where a locked box to collect shredding would have prevented a big problem.

Miami Shredding Service

IDTheftAlerts — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 21:51:00 +0000

Shred Nations has expanded their coverage in the Miami area with the addition of Quick Shred. From their location in Jupiter, Quick Shred offers mobile shredding to Miami, Ft Lauderdale, Palm Beach and surrounding communities. Their clients include medical, financial and legal offices throughout the city. They pride themselves on quality service at a competitive price.

To get a quote on shredding for your business in Miami just visit Shred Nations.

Easy way to Steal Identities

IDTheftAlerts — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 19:54:00 +0000

Denise Jackson was recently arrested for identity theft in Shreveport. She went through the dumpster in her apartment complex to get the personal information of another resident. Denise then used the information to go on a $7,000 spending spree.

Had the victim used a shredder or even easier, a shredding service then she wouldn't be spending her time calling credit card companies to clear up her credit history.

Easier for James Bond

IDTheftAlerts — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 19:09:00 +0000

If you are hoping to break into the German central bank's new vault you might want to go through their dumpster. Instead of shredding the construction plans they just tossed them in the trash where they were found by a hairdresser. The central bank maintains that this does not impact the security of the vault.

If your business has a important documents it is probably time to hire a shredding service.

Shredding in North Kansas City

IDTheftAlerts — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 16:20:00 +0000

Labor Ready in North Kansas City is the latest business to dump their employees' personal information in the trash instead of shredding it. The information included W-2s and job application. FACTA has required the proper disposal information for years but business continue to believe that they won't be caught if they just throw everything in the trash. Business owners who are even more naive trust their lowest paid employees to use the office shredder.

To really protect your employees and customers it is time to hire a shredding service.

Red Cross Not Shredding in Dallas

IDTheftAlerts — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 23:26:00 +0000

Red Cross employees were surprised to find their personal records sitting in a hallway marked trash. The files containing names, addresses and social security numbers sat out for over six hours waiting for the cleaning crew before they were secured.

The Red Cross spokesperson said they were supposed to shred old personnel files but they didn't have a shredding service. Once again an organization using the "I hope they are shredding" approach makes the news.

Shredding Not Done in Casselberry

IDTheftAlerts — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 22:20:00 +0000

Patient files belonging to Doctor Jeffrey Mueller were discovered today in the Casselberry Commons strip mall. The files contained the patients name, addresses and social security numbers. The files were discovered and reported to local media so no theft should result from the doctors negligence.

Dr. Mueller's attorney said it was done without his permission. If he buys an office shredder and expects his staff to assign themselves the extra work he is a bigger fool than most.

If you don't want your practice listed in the same breath with Jeffry Mueller we can help you find a shredding service.