Financial firms have specific legal and ethical obligations to properly destroy their documents and with the help of a good NJ financial record shredding company they can destroy documents for minimal cost and with minimal effort. Identity theft is a serious and growing problem in the United States. Many millions of Americans are affected every year and the consequences can be very serious.
Businesses That Have Financial Records
While all confidential information should be protected, identity thieves often find financial information to be the most valuable. Other types of information such as healthcare information can be used maliciously. Personal information such as social security numbers, addresses and names can be used to falsely open credit cards and make purchases. However, financial information such as bank account numbers and existing credit card information can be used immediately and often without any immediate detection by the individual or watchdog agencies.
Further, there are laws specific to the financial industry which require that all confidential information be properly destroyed. The Gramm Leach Bliley Act, also known as the Financial Modernization Act of 1999 requires that all financial institutions protect the confidential information of their clients. Financial institutions is defined broadly in the Act and includes not only banks, securities firms and insurance companies but also all other companies that provide financial products and services to customers. Such companies may include those providing consumer loans, preparing tax returns or providing financial advice, for example. The Gramm Leach Bliley Act has some significant consequences attached to it for noncompliance. Both the financial institution and officers and directors of that institution can be held civilly liable and subject to significant fines.
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How to Properly Dispose of Financial Records
Since financial institutions have both a legal and ethical obligation to properly destroy financial records, it is important that they do so carefully. One of the best and most cost effective ways to destroy financial records is by hiring a NJ financial record shredding company. A good record shredding company will have good employees, good business practices and state of the art equipment all of which ensures the proper and legal destruction of your financial records.
When you begin searching for a record shredding company there are a few things to keep in mind. First, you want to hire a company that is AAA certified by the National Association for Information Destruction (NAID). The AAA rating is the highest rating NAID bestows on businesses and indicates the shredding company’s compliance in more than 25 critical areas.
Next, you want to determine if your records will be shredded on-site or off-site. Either way you want to make sure that it is completed by a reliable employee who has undergone an extensive background check and drug test. You also want to make sure that video cameras monitor the destruction of your documents.
Finally, you want to make sure that the shredding company can shred CDs, hard drives and computers in addition to paper. Much of the identity theft that is occurring in the United States is a result of compromised computer information.
So, if you want to protect your business and your customer’s personal information then seek out a NJ financial record shredding company that you can trust to get this job done right.
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