Security experts agree that certain documents should be
shredded before you dispose of them. These include anything
that contains:
- Your signature
- Your social security number
- Passwords
- Account numbers
- Personal medical information
- Personal legal information
(Click here
for a more complete list)
All of the above pose a risk to you when it's time
to recycle or toss them in the trash. Identity thieves
can use this information for any number of undesirable
activities.
If you use a shredder before sending these items off
forever, you probably think you're safe. That all depends.
Most shredders are of the strip cut type. They turn
your documents into long, thin strips of paper, just
like the name suggests. But if you've ever had to piece
a page back together after an accidental trip through
the shredder, you know that it's usually not very hard.
There is a solution. Buy a cross-cut, diamond-cut
or confetti-cut shredder. The investment will be
worth it.
Cross-cut shredders cut horizontally and
vertically
at the same time, turning pages into thousands of
squares of paper.
Confetti-cut shredders do the same thing, but the
results are even smaller.
Diamond-cut shredders create rounded, diamond-like
pieces.
Putting this jigsaw puzzle back together would be
more or less impossible, which is exactly what you
want.
However, make absolutely sure that you can live without
the document that you're about to destroy. After all,
the goal is to achieve a little peace of mind with
those little pieces of paper.
