Why Does My Business Need Document Shredding?

Paper shredding – something every company should do. Many files are becoming digital, and businesses are installing encryption software to meet state standards and keep their information secure. But businesses also need paper shredding for documents that:

• Contain confidential information
• Pertain to customers or clients
• Include medical information
• Include accounting numbers
• Include banking statements

Data breaches cost companies millions of dollars a year, and many of the data breaches do not occur on computers. A lack of proper paper shredding can lead to confidential information being leaked or abused.

Depending on your business document shredding needs, by law, shred your documents or destroy them properly. This can occur with medical information, confidential business files or other information as stated in the state or federal law. Destroying documents goes well beyond simply throwing them in the trash – they need to be illegible.

Businesses can also benefit from business document shredding because it allows for the elimination of waste in the workspace, and saves space.

What documents should be shredded?

• Telephone numbers
• Driver’s licenses
• Passport numbers
• Credit card numbers
• Bank account addresses and statements
• Social Security numbers
• Insurance policies
• Credit card or debit card information
• Legal documents
• Medical records
• Profit and loss statements
• Financial statements
• Payroll records
• Audits
• Market research
• Tax records
• Canceled checks
• Business plans

If your business is simply throwing out all of these vital documents, it’s time to use a business document shredding in Queens to ensure that you are information stays clear of prying eyes.

Top Reasons to Choose Complete Shredding Solutions

Whether you run a business with classified documents or you simply have a home filled with forms from decades past, professional shredding services are your best option for ridding yourself of papers and media that you no longer need. But with all of the options of shredding services out there, how do you know which shredding service to use? If you’re in New York City or Long Island, these are the top reasons to choose Complete Shredding Solutions for all of your data destruction needs.

Security
It’s extremely important to protect your information. Improperly disposing of certain documents can land you in hot water. Don’t be a victim of personal or corporate identity theft. At Complete Shredding Solutions, you aren’t just shredding data; you’re shredding liability. We carefully destroy all documents that can put you at risk while keeping you compliant with all state and federal laws. We are “Information Elimination™.”

Professionalism
Our agents are the pride of our company. Each agent is rigorously trained and insured, ready to collect your papers in locked document storage receptacles and transfer them to our high-security facilities for shredding. Every collection is done in a timely and organized fashion to be respectful of your office.

Affordable
A big factor in what sets us apart from other companies is our price. Our facilities are equipped with commercial power shredders that can shred 20,000 pounds of paper an hour, allowing us to bring the savings to you, the consumer.

At the end of your shredding experience, we provide you with a certificate signifying your proof of compliance with all privacy legislation. Complete Shredding Solutions offers you secure paper shredding performed by trained professionals at an affordable price.

Complete Shredding Solution is your provider for shredding services in Nassau and Suffolk County, Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens. Call us today at 516-442-1624 for more information.

The Importance of Proper Data Destruction

In today’s technologically-advanced age, getting ahold of information is often as easy as clicking a few buttons. While this is convenient when we need directions or a cooking recipe, it is dangerous in regards to personal and confidential information. Proper data destruction is crucial to protecting yourself and your clients.

Paper Trails

It’s not uncommon to find stacks of old papers lying around the house. Often, we feel that we need to hold on to all these documents just in case we need to reference a bill from 1994. In reality, after a certain amount of time, you’re better off safely disposing of those papers so they don’t fall in the wrong hands. Excluding majorly important documents, such as birth/death certificates, military documents, or documents involving the government or lawyers, you can get rid of most other forms after about seven years.

Hard Drives
You’d be surprised how much information can be taken from an old hard drive. When you input information on the internet- passwords, bank logins, addresses, etc.- it’s automatically stored in your computer. This is even worse for businesses since you’re saving other people’s information. If you have old computers sitting around, you’re risking all that data getting stolen and used in ways that can harm you or your business.

Why Is This Important?
Identity theft is all too common these days. You might be surprised at how easily someone can steal your identity with just a few simple details from an old bank statement or a password off a hard drive. If that data belongs to a client, you could also be faced with a lawsuit on top of a ruined reputation for exposing client information.

What Do You Do?
The best way to keep you and your client’s information safe is to practice proper data destruction. Have your old documents shredded in a certifiably secure facility and send old technology along with them. (Contrary to popular belief, smashing your computer or hard drive with a hammer does not guarantee that you destroyed your data). So find a data destruction company and shredding service that will provide you with a sense of security when it comes to disposing of your old documents and technology.

In Nassau and Suffolk County, Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens, Complete Shredding Solutions is your trusted data destruction service. We offer drop-off and recurring shredding service to provide you with convenient and safe document destruction.
For more information about Complete Shredding Solutions, call us today at 516-442-1624 for more information.

Recycling Resolutions for the New Year

At the beginning of each year, many of us decide to live better by promising ourselves to lose weight, eat healthy, or exercise more. While it’s great to improve our own lives, we should also be concerned with the life of our planet. This New Year, make a resolution to reduce, reuse, and recycle with these simple tips.

1. Put an End to Unwanted Mail. How often do you throw out half of your mail each day because it’s a stack of flyers and advertisements? There are websites you can sign up on that will remove your name from the mailing lists that send you unwanted papers. Not receiving those flyers anymore is both convenient and eco-friendly.
2. Use Reusable Bags When Shopping. Plastic bags offered at most stores are killers on our environment. Bring reusable cloth bags with you everywhere you shop to ease your carbon footprint. You might even save money when shopping, since some stores are beginning to charge shoppers for each plastic bag they use.
3. Buy in Bulk to Avoid Excess Packaging. When shopping for snacks, mealtime items, and household products, buy in bulk and pack food in reusable containers to bring to school or work. This prevents you from throwing out more packaging that smaller items come with. Plus, bulk buying is usually cheaper, so you’ll save money, too.
4. Buy Smaller Quantities of Perishable Foods. Unused or spoiled foods end up sitting in landfills until they decompose. Only buy the amount of food you’ll actually use in order to avoid having to throw out the excess.
5. Reuse and Reduce Waste. Buy durable goods and clothing so they last longer and you don’t have to replace them as often. Try to repair broken items, and donate unwanted clothing to homeless shelters so they can be reused by those who need them.
6. Learn Everything You Can Recycle: When it comes to filling your recycling bins, throw in aluminum and metal cans, glass bottles and jars, plastic containers, cardboard cartons, and most papers. Don’t just stick to your kitchen; collect recyclable materials from bathrooms, bedrooms, and offices too.

Reducing your carbon footprint is often easier than you might think. At Complete Shredding Solutions, we are dedicated to being as eco-friendly as possible. Your paper is shredded and baled at our secure shred service facilities then sent directly to pulping mills, saving a tree for every 200 pounds of paper shredding. We do our part in helping the environment; with these tips, you can do yours.

When you choose Complete Shredding Solutions, you are choosing to go green. For more information on our paper shredding services in Nassau & Suffolk County, call us at 516-442-1642 or, for New York City, at 212-939-7534

How to Save Paper in the Office

Between printing reports, client files, inventory sheets, and that one time you made it rain confetti on your coworker’s desk, offices are hubs for major paper usage. All that idle-lying paper builds up big waste and kills more trees in the process. Follow these tips for saving paper in the office.

1. Make Double-Sided Printing the Office Standard: Print on both sides of the sheet whenever possible, especially for internal documents. Make “double-sided” the default setting on all office computers and printers, and use smaller fonts and margins to take up less room on the page.
2. Save Single-Sided Pages: Instead of throwing out pages that were only single-side printed, save them to use for other printing projects. Have a bin next to the o
   office printer for papers that can be used to print drafts or other internal office material.
3. Limit Paper Mailings: Only mail out information that is necessary for clients to receive, and save paper by printing addresses directly on envelopes instead of using labels. Remove your company name and address from irrelevant mailing lists as well, to stop receiving outside advertisements.
4. Only Purchase Recycled Paper: The Natural Defense Council suggests office paper should be at least 30% recycled, if uncoated, and 10% coated. Aim to only purchase and stock your office with paper that has the highest percentage possible of recycled content.
5. Encourage Others to Be Paper-Smart: Include footnotes at the end of all emails asking recipients to only print out information if it’s necessary. Have everyone reuse as much paper as possible, and include reminders around the office to print wisely.

Saving paper in your office is often easier than you’d think, but when you have documents that you can’t reuse, call Complete Shredding Solutions to help. We recycle all of the material we receive at our facility to help prevent more trees from being cut down to make paper.

Shredding large amounts of documents at your office takes forever and will most likely result in your shredder jamming or overheating. Complete Shredding Solutions offers AAA-certified purge services and document destruction for Long Island and NYC. Call us today at 516-442-1642 to learn more about our secure paper shredding services.

Computer Information Elimination

If someone browsed your computer, what would they find? We’re guessing a lot of photos, some music, and a bunch of deleted passwords, addresses, and financial and medical statements. Did you not know that most of those things are still linked to your computer even after you delete them? Well, they are; and that’s why it’s important to have proper computer information elimination.

Step 1: Wipe Your Hard Drive.
Before you do this, save any files you would like to keep to a USB drive, external hard drive, or new computer. There are many programs online and in stores that can clean out your hard drive, but consider using ones that wipe it several times so no information can be retrieved. If you use your computer for business purposes, make sure to follow the laws that dictate the proper data security requirements when handling certain client information. (See Step 3 for best practices.)

Step 2: Dispose of Your Computer.
There are many routes you can take when getting rid of your computer once you’ve cleared the hard drive. You can recycle it by checking the manufacturer’s website or the EPA for electronic product recycling programs. You can donate the computer to a charity of your choice; or, you can resell it to a person or organization, and get some money back on your investment. If you’re still worried about other people having access to your information, see Step 3 and call a shred service.

Step 3: Call Complete Shredding Solutions
The most reassuring way to know that nobody can or will get a hold of the personal information on your computer is by having it shredded to pieces in front of your eyes. Complete Shredding Solutions offers media destruction services for hard drives, microfilm, and more. We can give you peace of mind knowing your information is safe from the wrong hands.

Complete Shredding Solutions is not just a shred service, we are equipped to destroy an array of business and consumer products, including non-paper items. We can shred pretty much anything! That is why we are true experts at computer information elimination. For more information about destroying your old computer and hard drive, call us at 516-442-1642.

Shredded Paper Uses at Home

The best way to improve our carbon footprints and help our planet is by recycling and reusing as much material as we can. Rather than chucking all of that old paper lying around your house, these are some great ways to reuse shredded paper in your home.

1. Pack Things to Ship: Shredded paper can provide enough cushioning to keep your fragile items safe and is much more environmentally friendly than styrofoam packing peanuts. To avoid a messy cleanup, stuff the paper into Ziploc bags to imitate the air pillows shipping companies use. After you’re done, reuse the packages or use the paper in a compost heap.
2. Let Your Kids Craft: Paper can be used in a variety of arts and crafts projects. Give your kids some paint, a couple of brushes, and the shredded paper to create a masterpiece with. You can even mix equal amounts of flour and water and use the shredded paper to make paper-mȃché sculptures.
3. Fill Gift Baskets: Why spend money and use store-bought paper scraps or plastic grass when you can reuse shredded paper to fill holiday gift baskets? Cover the bottom of your basket with some finely shredded paper, and nestle your goodies atop it. It’s safer than plastic grass and more environmentally friendly.
4. Make Your Own Mulch: You can plant shredded paper as mulch directly into the soil around trees, shrubs, and gardens. The microorganisms in the soil will break down and eat the paper the same way they would in a compost heap.
5. Use It as Animal Bedding: Line your pet’s crate with shredded paper for added comfort. You can even donate the paper shred to your local vet’s office or animal shelter so they can use it for other pets. Just make sure to check that the paper and ink materials are safe for animals.

It’s always a better choice to reuse shred paper than simply throw it away. At Complete Shredding Solutions, we recycle all of the materials we shred at our facilities by sending bales of shred paper to mills that use the waste to make new paper. If you want to help your planet while safely destroying your documents, our shred service is here for you!

 

For more information on paper shredding services on Long Island, NYC, or New Jersey, call us at 516-442-1624.

Tips for Organizing Paperwork

Does your office look like an avalanche of papers settled all over it? Do you have problems finding papers when you need them? Do you want to organize your paperwork but have no idea where to start? If so, you should follow these tips:

• Be Simple: The last thing you need is to create a filing system that is more complicated than your files themselves. Work out a simple system that will be easy for you to figure out.
• Fly the Colors: Color-coding is one of the best ways to organize basically anything. Adding color to your filing system can help you find paperwork more quickly and easily, as well as make your organization prettier.
  
• Invest in a Good Filing Cabinet: Poorly made, and therefore cheaper, filing cabinets tend to become strained and difficult to open under the weight of your heavy files. Invest in durable, strong filing cabinets – you’ll thank us later.
• Keep Important Papers Easily Accessible: While you want to keep important documents safe, you also want them readily available in case you need them. Keep track of documents like birth certificates, deeds, insurance policies, medical records, passports, and wills. You may want to keep some of these in separate files, while putting others in a safety deposit box.
• Make it a Habit: After creating this wonderful filing system, stick to it. Take time each week, if not each day, to file away papers you’re no longer using. If you perform this task regularly, it should only take you a few minutes to get all your papers sorted away.

Organizing paperwork will always be a work in progress. You will always have new paperwork to file and find new ways to improve your filing system. So what happens with the papers you really don’t need to keep? You shred them with Complete Shredding Solutions, of course!

Complete Shredding Solutions offers AAA certified purge services and document destruction for Long Island and NYC.  For document destruction services in Long Island, NYC, & New Jersey, call us at 516-442-1642.

Shred it! Declutter Your Office

Nothing beats walking into work in the morning to see your office littered with papers and files, right? Wrong! Believe it or not, having a more organized office can increase your productivity and happiness at work. In order to get there, follow our tips to decluttering your office and just shred it!

1. Set aside time. This isn’t going to be a 10-minute job. Schedule time in your calendar dedicated to cleaning your office. You should plan to spend at least 30 minutes doing this, but if your office is especially messy, give yourself more time or multiple cleaning sessions.
2. Tackle your desk first. This is likely where you spend most of your time, so declutter this first. Take everything off of your desk except the essentials – your computer, phone, and a maybe a notepad and pen. Neatly store anything else in your desk drawers, and toss all unnecessary papers into a side pile.
3. Tear through the paper pile. Show no mercy, and get rid of anything that isn’t important. Magazines and newspapers? Chuck them. Paid bills over a year old? Trash them. Scribbled notes to yourself? Toss them, Curry-style.
4. Go upward, not outward. If you are someone who writes notes as reminders, don’t scatter them all over your desk. Place a cork board on the wall, and pin the notes, and any other reminders or calendar pages, above your desk instead. This saves space and visually looks better and cleaner.
5. Utilize every space. Don’t let the empty space under your desk go to waste. Place easy-open baskets or boxes there for quick and removable storage. If you want a more permanent solution, install a couple of under-desk shelves.

Having a decluttered office allows you to move around and find things more easily. Now, once you’ve cleaned up, what should you do with the trash from that paper pile? Shred it, of course! Sending your unwanted papers to Complete Shredding Solutions is safer than disposing of them yourself, especially if those papers contain sensitive information.

We provide recurring shredding services as well as drop-off shredding services and more. For more information about shredding services on Long Island, NYC, & New Jersey, call us at 516-442-1642.

Fun Facts about Paper Shredding

From painting to penning the Great American novel, there are so many things you can do on paper. Plus, we promise it’s a fun time watching thousands of pounds of paper getting shredded every hour on industrial shredders. However, did you know that paper shredding, as a whole, has some pretty cool backstories to it? We bet you didn’t know these fun facts about paper shredding.

1. The first paper shredding machine was patented in 1909. Its inventor, Abbot Augustus Lowe, sadly never got to see his creation mass-produced as he died three years after patenting it.
2. The next paper shred machine was created in 1935 by German engineer, Adolf Ehinger. Its sole purpose was to shred thousands of volumes of anti-Nazi propaganda before Hitler’s secret police could find them.
3. Paper shredding has grown into its own industry due to state and federal laws meant to prevent identity theft. That’s why you’ve probably noticed a lot of document destruction companies popping up. (Like us!)
4. Paper shredding became much more popular in homes in 1988. This was when the Supreme Court ruled that any personal trash became public property once it was placed on the curb. Homeowners didn’t want anyone easily stealing their information.
5. Shredding isn’t something just done in-house. Many companies hire outside document destruction firms to shred the pounds upon pounds of information they no longer need or want.
6. Even the biggest paper shredders in your offices are no match for industrial shredders. These bad boys eat thousands of pounds of paper every hour and have no problem taking on binder clips, rubber bands, staples, hanging folders, and more.
7. Paper shred offers many perks. The biggest benefits of shredding your unwanted documents is knowing that your information will not fall into the wrong hands.

Complete Shredding Solutions offers secure, AAA certified purge services and document destruction for your home or office. We make sure that your information is safe from identity theft and even provide you with a certificate signifying your proof of compliance with all privacy legislation. For document destruction and paper shredding services on Long Island,  and in NYC, New Jersey, and nationwide, call us at 516-442-1642.