The Real Costs of Free Paper Shredding: Why Certified Document Destruction Is a Must

When it comes to document shredding, a free paper shredding approach using an office shredder can seem like an attractive option. After all, you don’t have to worry about paying for a service or having your sensitive documents handled by someone else. However, the costs of a “free” approach to document destruction can outweigh its benefits and be more costly than you think.

Free Paper Shredding Comes at a Cost

Free document destruction using an in-house shredder may seem like a great way to save money, but there are a number of hidden costs that can add up, including:

Labor

DIY shredding is a slow and tedious process, as small-scale machines can only accept paper and staff have to remove any staples or paper clips before hand-feeding them into the machine. Also, hand-held shredders can easily overheat and take up to 30 minutes to cool down.

Investing in a document destruction service can be a good option for businesses that require a large volume of shredding documents. These services use machines designed to accept large amounts of paper and can shred multiple sheets at once, saving staff time and energy. This can help businesses meet compliance regulations and save time and energy while shredding documents.

Machine Maintenance 

Companies have the option of buying their own shredding equipment or hiring a professional document shredding company. Purchasing equipment may seem affordable, but it can come with hidden costs, such as maintenance and repair.

It can be more cost-effective to hire a professional document shredding company instead of purchasing and using your own shredding equipment. A document shredding company has industrial shredders that can handle large amounts of documents quickly and securely, and they have the expertise to handle any technical issues that may arise.

Liability

In-house shredding can be convenient, but it can also pose injury and liability risks such as paper cut injuries, slips and falls, and fires. Companies could be subject to OSHA enforcement and workers’ compensation claims.

Businesses with a lot of sensitive material should outsource secure document destruction. Professional paper shredding companies use secure machines to destroy documents, protecting employees and making it impossible to reconstruct the documents.

The Real Cost of a Data Breach

DIY paper shredding approaches can be insufficient and lead to costly data breaches if documents are not properly shredded. Standard office shredders only cut paper into strips, which can be easily reassembled, making it easier for data thieves to recover documents.

The average cost of a data breach for a business is $4.24 million, with 38% of that coming from lost business, such as customer turnover, system downtime, and the cost of acquiring new business. Data breaches can also lead to reputational damage and long-term losses in business, investment, and employee recruitment. As 70% of business leaders agree that data protection is a key element of trust, it is important to consider the consequences of a data breach when creating a destruction plan.

Secure Document Shredding Enhances ROI

The Vital Records Control® VitalShred NAID AAA-certified secure destruction service provides a more cost-effective paper shredding process for businesses to protect personal documents. As a National Association for Information Destruction (NAID) AAA-certified service, the VitalShred solution follows document destruction best practices, including the following:

Secure Chain of Custody

At VRC®, we understand the importance of secure chain of custody. That’s why we use a barcode scan at every touchpoint to track our complete chain of custody. This ensures that all data is handled with the utmost security throughout the entire process.

Our drivers are highly trained and have passed background checks, and our GPS-tracked shredding trucks ensure secure document destruction.

Finally, at the end of the destruction process, you receive a certificate of destruction. This document proves that your documents and data have been securely destroyed, providing you with peace of mind that your confidential information is safe.

Cross-cut Shredding

The VitalShred destruction solution offers an effective way to protect data from physical theft by using commercial, cross-cut shredders, which chop documents into small, confetti-like pieces, making it impossible for thieves to reconstruct the data.

By using VitalShred, businesses and organizations can rest assured that their confidential information is being disposed of in a secure manner, mitigating the risk of physical data theft.

Furthermore, VitalShred also offers electronic data destruction services which involve the physical destruction of hard drives, USB drives, and other digital storage media. This ensures that confidential information is not only kept away from prying eyes but also destroyed beyond recovery.

Bulk Shredding

Working with shredding companies with professional-grade paper shredders are essential for both small and enterprise businesses looking to save time and money. With the ability to easily manage even the largest volumes of paper, our equipment can quickly shred documents and other materials.

Additionally, our shredders can handle staples and paper clips, so employees do not need to waste time removing them beforehand. This is especially useful for companies that generate a lot of confidential materials, as it ensures all information is securely destroyed.

By investing in secure paper shredding services, businesses can rest assured that their documents are properly destroyed and their confidential information remains secure.

Industrial-grade Equipment

VitalShred is a reliable shredding service that provides businesses with state-of-the-art equipment. Our equipment is owned, serviced, and maintained by VRC so that businesses do not have to pay for the cost of purchasing and maintaining the equipment themselves.

Our shredding equipment is designed to ensure maximum security, and our on-site technicians are highly trained and experienced in handling sensitive information. This not only saves businesses money but also eliminates the risk of staff injuries during maintenance or use.

With VitalShred, businesses can rest assured that their documents are secure and their staff is safe.

Flexible Shredding Service Requests

Having trained personnel to collect and shred secure documents directly from business sites can be a huge help to any business. Not only does it remove the burden of staff members, allowing them to focus on tasks that are more important to their revenue-building goals, but it also ensures that documents are collected and shredded with the highest level of security.

By placing convenient shredding orders from our customer portal, VitalWeb, you can choose how often documents are collected and destroyed, ensuring that your organization is up to date with the latest regulations and laws surrounding document destruction.

Additionally, we also provide secure storage in between shredding cycles, meaning that businesses don’t have to worry about documents remaining on their premises for extended periods of time.

Destruction and Recycling

At VitalShred, we are committed to helping organizations protect sensitive data from identity theft and other security breaches. We offer secure shredding and recycling services to businesses, government agencies, and other organizations.

Additionally, VitalShred offers community shredding events to help organizations raise brand awareness and prevent identity theft. Our team will provide the necessary equipment, secure bins, and trained staff for each event. 

We are dedicated to helping our partners protect the confidential information of their customers and employees. Our shredding services are designed to keep up with the ever-changing security landscape.

Multiple Document Shredding Services

VitalShred includes a suite of secure shredding services to meet the needs of businesses and residents. Our one-time shred service is ideal for those who have a one-time need to shred documents or media.

We offer convenient drop off shredding services for customers who need large amounts of material shredded quickly and securely. For businesses or organizations who need to shred a large volume of documents, we provide on-site shred services.

Additionally, VitalShred offers hard drive destruction services that use powerful shredding machines to completely destroy hard drives and data. This ensures that data can never be recovered or misused.

Do you want to make sure your business’s information isn’t leaked to the public? The VRC VitalShred certified document destruction service can ensure your records are properly disposed and unable to be retrieved. Get a free shred quote from us.