Recycling is the responsible thing to do in this day and age. With the increase of disposed paper rising at alarming rates over the last decades, it makes sense to recycle and do your part to keep our environment and landscape clear. But is doing your part and recycling paper putting your office space at risk for identity theft and data breaches? It could very well be the thing that will compromise your security and ruin lives. How can something that seems like the right thing to do actually be causing so much harm? It’s possible you aren’t doing it right, and if you put a secure recycling plan in action, there is no reason why you can’t protect your secure documents and still recycle. Here are a few tips that can help.

Lock it up. Plastic recycling tubs are great for collecting paper before sending it off to be recycled but the tubs that are not enclosed are leaving you open for compromised privacy. Keep you discarded documents safe in locked storage receptacles and keep those documents secure from potential theft.

Have a plan. Create a policy for proper disposal of papers to be recycled and provide thorough training sessions for each employee. Your policy is only as good as your employees who follow through with it. Making it mandatory and following through to ensure all procedures are being followed will make for a more secure environment.

Make it accessible. Set up recycling stations in convenient locations close to all desks and cubicles. The further away a recycling bin is the more tempting it is to skip a trip and toss a private document in the trash. Easy access can help make sure documents are deposited in secured bins each and every time.

Shred With Us can help with your secure document recycling. Once we shred these documents, they are baled and recycled into new products helping our environment while protecting your privacy.