Over 10 million dollars in fines have been levied against businesses in the past two years because they were careless in the destruction and disposal of documents, including computer hard drives. A business can be vulnerable to a protracted and costly court battle when data is not properly disposed of. The embarrassment resulting from the negative publicity is detrimental to the future of the business, and client confidence is definitely shaken.
Criminals have developed high-tech methods to get at the computer records of a business, and they also know how to search dumpsters for valuable documents. Some criminals even go to dump sites and look for vital documents, and many have been successful in finding records in a dump. One criminal ring will have members call a company on the pre-tense of being a document shredding company selling their services. When they are told that the company doesn’t need to destroy documents, then they are marked for an attack. Don’t discuss document destruction on the phone with any stranger. The Best Document Shredding services will have the proper identification, a stable business address, and be certified by the National Association of Information Destruction (NAID).
The agencies that require data destruction according to specified methods include Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA), Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA), Florida Unlawful Use of Personal Identification Information Act, and others.
Every business should develop a records retention policy which would be based on the legal requirements of agencies they work with, the need to keep documents, and the recommendations of the IRS. Some medical organizations may choose to keep records for a specified time depending on the nature of the record. A retention policy can be tailored to meet individual business needs, but the records must be properly destroyed when the destruction date arrives. An attorney can advise what documents must be kept to exceed the time allowed for the filing of a lawsuit where these documents would be required.
The Best Document Shredding is a process whereby a shredding truck comes to the site of the business, and loads the documents into the shredder in view of a business employee. Hard drives should be destroyed by a company which can guarantee destruction, but more importantly, with a company you can observe destruction of the hard drive. Get more information here!
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