When it comes to destroying sensitive documents with personal information and data, there are numerous methods you can use. While paper shredders are a common solution, they’re not always available or practical. Whether you’re dealing with a broken shredder, trying to be more eco-friendly, or simply looking for alternative methods, there are several effective ways to destroy confidential papers without relying on a mechanical shredder. There are also several ineffective ways to destroy your confidential papers that are also dangerous to yourself or the environment. This article will explore both effective and ineffective methods of how to shred paper without a shredder to ensure your information remains secure.
Why Shredding is Essential For Privacy and Security
Shredding is a key practice for maintaining privacy and ensuring security. This is especially when it comes to paper documents containing personal, financial, or confidential information. Shredding physical documents, whether they’re personal documents, outdated forms, and other confidential data, is essential today. Taking the time to shred outdated documents can help you in many ways:
- Protecting Personal Information: Shredding prevents identity theft by destroying documents containing personal data. It also ensures that personal details like bank account numbers and social security numbers are unreadable.
- Compliance with Laws: Paper shredding also meets legal requirements under laws such as HIPAA and FACTA and helps avoid penalties and legal consequences associated with data breaches.
- Avoiding Business Risks: For businesses wishing to protect their data, shredding protects confidential business information from competitors and reduces the risk of reputation damage and financial loss from information leaks.
- Environmental Benefits: Shredding documents help support the environment and support recycling efforts. This method reduces the volume of waste in landfills by compacting shredding materials.
- Reassurance: For people worried about data leaks and sensitive information being compromised, it provides reassurance that the information is securely destroyed and allows businesses and individuals to focus on their activities.
With these points in mind, it’s crucial to consider your options for paper shredding, as shredding documents play a role in modern information security and management practices today.
Ineffective Ways to Shred Paper Without a Shredder
- Manual Tearing: Even though you’d think this method was simple, it can be time consuming and may not completely destroy your sensitive information, especially if the pieces are not small enough.
- Cutting With Scissors: Similar to manual tearing, this method won’t ensure that your information can’t be pieced back together.
- Burning: While burning paper is considered fast and effective, there are various risks to using this method. Paper contains plastics, varnishes, and formaldehyde that releases harmful chemicals into the air when they’re burned. In addition, burning paper increases the risk of house fires, wildfires, and legal ramifications if the fire loses control and burns a building.
- Soaking Paper in Water and Bleach: This method can work, however, it can be risky if you have poor ventilation in your home or office. Moreover, bleach can cause serious illness if not used safely. It would also require substantial resources to manage properly. Your papers need to soak in the bleach for at least 24 hours and require additional steps to pulp.
Effective Ways to Shred Paper Without a Shredder
- Drop-Off Shredding Services: You can drop your papers off where a shred bin is available. These locations partner with a secure shredding provider that will come to pick the bins up, and shred the papers inside of them at their secure shred facility. This method is best if you have around 90 lbs. or less since these locations usually charge around $1 per pound.
- Professional Shredding Services: A professional shredding service is the most effective way to shred paper if you don’t have a shredder. These services providers ensure that your documents are destroyed and pulped so the information can never be recovered. Additionally, they will provide you with a certificate of destruction as proof that your papers were completely destroyed and in compliance with data privacy laws.
What Are Your Options For Professional Shredding Services?
Shred Nations partners with secure shredding service providers nationwide. Our service providers use industrial-grade equipment to efficiently handle large amounts of paper. However, they can handle any sized project. They offer a variety of service options for any need and budget, so we’ll match you with who we think will best fit your needs!
Onsite Shredding
Also called mobile shredding, onsite shredding involves shredding trucks that come to your location to perform the shredding. This method lets you witness the shredding process in person for peace of mind, especially when handling highly confidential information. For businesses with strict privacy regulations, this method is often preferred. It’s considered an excellent choice for those requiring immediate destruction of sensitive documents without them leaving their premises. Regarding cost, mobile (onsite) shredding typically ranges from $130 to $175 for handling one to ten boxes. However, the costs will vary depending on the project’s size, capacity, and other factors.
Offsite Shredding
Offsite shredding transports documents to a secure facility for destruction. This option is generally considered more cost-effective for companies that generate larger volumes of paperwork but do not need a witness. This service provides a certificate of destruction, adheres to privacy regulations, and can ensure high security with your documents. Offsite shredding generally costs between $110 and $130 for one to ten boxes. Similarly, the costs can vary based on location, size, and other factors.
Ship ‘N’ Shred
Ship ’N’ Shred offers document destruction based on the volume of paperwork you have and works with shipping services to create a convenient and affordable method of shredding your papers. This service helps limit your work. All you would need to do is mail your documents to a shredding facility using pre-paid shipping options. This makes it useful for businesses that live in remote areas and those who prefer the convenience of not traveling to drop-off locations.
Shred Your Papers Effectively With Shred Nations Today
Shred Nations can help you determine which paper shredding services best fit your needs. Our teams work with providers that know how to shred paper securely and efficiently. If you’d like to receive a free quote, contact Shred Nations at (800) 747-3365 today.
