In this digital world, most companies are becoming paperless.
However, in reality, it’s completely impossible to achieve the tag of 100% paperless office. Paper still plays a key role in making salary slips, tax receipts, business contracts, etc.
But it’s important to destroy your confidential documents from time to time as they are highly susceptible to risks and can tarnish your public reputation.
Some companies consider paper shredding a time-consuming process and often ignore its importance.
Companies that fail to shred paperwork are vulnerable to the following risks:
1. Identity crimes
You will be surprised to know that 4.8 million identity theft and fraud cases were reported in 2020
Most identity crimes occur offline and are linked to paper information like a chequebook, bank statements, employees’ data, tax records, and more.
Any fraudster can steal important information and misuse the data making you susceptible to identity theft and data branches.
Once the documents are no longer required, destroy them in compliance with all state laws and policies.
2. Legal penalties
Holding on to outdated and old documents after their retention period expose you to legal risks and you may have to pay enormous fines.
For instance, in 2009, a pharmacy company was fined $2.25 million because its employees were caught dumping the professional records in an unsafe public bin without shredding them.
The penalties for not shredding paper are even higher today.
So, destroy paper records on time to lower your legal liability and protect
business privacy.
3. Loss of customers
Customers are the biggest asset of any company.
However, a negative image can result in the loss of valuable customers and can cause irreparable damage to the breached company.
Moreover, reputational damage is long-lasting and will hinder the organization’s ability to retain old clients and attract new customers.
4. Risk of unfortunate events
The worst nightmare a company can face is that all its confidential and sensitive documents have caught fire and go up in smoke.
Other natural disasters like floods and earthquakes can also result in the loss of important business information.
Moreover, if documents are kept in wet-prone areas, they may get exposed to mould and pests.
The best solution is to make digital copies of all your records and shred documents constantly to get rid of unnecessary and outdated paperwork in the safest way possible.
5. Exposed business secrets
Every company has private information that they don’t want to expose to the public or their competitors.
However, if you will not shred confidential contracts or statements on time, good chances it may leak causing adverse effects to your company.
In the end…
Every business should shred personal and professional information safely and efficiently.
It helps you to stay in compliance with the law, protects the environment, boosts productivity, prevents identity theft and any hazards.
The best bet is to hire a document shredding company in Perth that offers reliable and secure services at competitive prices. Dial: 0458 088 000.
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