SHREDDING
Getting shredded Paper documents pose a security risk to business that can be easy to overlook, which is why confidential shredding, especially in hybrid workspaces, is a necessity to keep a business’s data secure and comply with GDPR.
While many businesses are now digitalising their operations, there is still a significant role for paper documents in most. It also means that these documents need to be kept securely and disposed of properly once they are no longer needed, whether that is in the office or at home. A 2022 survey by office equipment manufacturer Fellowes found that 68% of businesses that took part in the survey handled a large amount of sensitive printed information daily. In addition, 70% of respondents were either taking printed work documents home, printing work documents at home – or both. More worryingly, just shy of half of this group were then putting these documents in a wastepaper or recycling bin without shredding them. “Furthermore, 46% of all respondents had seen people leave confidential work-related documents unattended,” says Jeremy Cooper from Fellowes. “This should be of big concern to businesses. Even if there seems to be strict policies on shredding sensitive information, these guidelines are often not followed outside of the office. Whether it’s in a corporate office or home workspace, sensitive paper data must be locked away when not in use, and securely shredded once it is no longer needed for the purpose it was acquired.” Staying compliant Fellowes’ survey also found that only 60% overall were familiar with the General Data
Protection Regulation (GDPR) that was introduced in 2018 and just one in four businesses had adapted their policies to include home working or remote working in general. “It is absolutely essential for organisations to act now to avoid hugely costly penalties by making sure polices are reviewed and updated to reflect the new way of working and potential data breach risks,” warns Jeremy. A key part of staying GDPR compliant is secure shredding, which ensures confidential paperwork cannot get into the wrong hands or result in a data breach. “In an era when more people than ever are working between home and office, yet complying with the GDPR matters as much as ever, the data security risks this presents are clear,” says Jeremy. “To comply with the GDPR, organisations need to ensure that employees have access to a shredder in the corporate office. Additionally, staff working from home should be equipped with a small or home office shredder. “Any documents that contain personal data and business records should be safely shredded in line with legal requirements on the retention of data. “HR records should be regularly checked, and once they have reached their legal expiry date, they must be destroyed. GDPR requires HR departments to demonstrate why they are keeping data on employees past and present and justify why they are keeping any data
Kyle Mitchell commercial sales director
whitakerbrothers.com
A key part of staying GDPR compliant is secure shredding, which ensures confidential paperwork cannot get into the wrong hands “
or result in a data breach.
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CONTINUED
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