Document destruction is a traditional practice in every commercial organisation and a key component of any data protection strategy. Document destruction is being outsourced to a greater degree these days, with specialists like this New Zealand company enhancing the efficiency and security of the process.
Security is certainly top of mind for a certified and experienced company like this one. It includes secure point to point transport and a complete chain of custody of documentation for total reassurance. Membership of NAID (National Association for Information Destruction), and NAID AAA certification for their Wellington branch, allows them to destroy a wide range of media with more authority than most.
Not every company can claim they are destroying documents with such surety. If you’re considering outsourcing your organisation’s document destruction, you need reassurance that it is being done securely, and in a way that meets compliance standards as well. By seeking answers to the following three questions, you’ll go a long way to discovering if the company will do what you want them to do, and within acceptable guidelines.
- Is the company certified to carry out secure destruction?
- Is my information secure, from collection to destruction?
- How is the material disposed of post destruction?
The answers should be enlightening. In respect of certification, not every company is accredited and, therefore, they set their own standards. With this comes a lack of compliance and a heightened risk that confidential information remains vulnerable. As more organisations seek to outsource their document destruction, a number of unaccredited businesses have been set up to take advantage of the growing demand for this service. Therefore, your chances of coming across an uncertified and unqualified company during your search for document destruction services are higher than ever before.
A lack of qualifications, experience and competence in this field will obviously affect the process. This is particularly relevant to the other two questions you need to ask about the security of your information from collection to destruction, and what happens to it afterwards. With respect to how the material is disposed of post destruction, best practice is that once the paper is shredded to particle size it is then recycled to ensure the impact on the environment is minimised. Dispose of your paper and documents in both an ethical and a secure manner.
At the end of the day, the most important question is this: are your documents being destroyed securely? If you’re not getting a definitive and positive answer, keep searching for a document destruction company that will give you the response you deserve.
