Top Tips for Disposing of Confidential Waste

We’re living in a digital age, but despite this, businesses still produce a huge amount of paper wastage each year. Protecting your sensitive information is a big concern for anyone, but is especially important for commercial companies who often have customers and partners relying on trustworthy data privacy. Just one mistake, and you could be landed with a large fine for breaching the Data Protection Act. But don’t fret; with the right know-how, disposing of your confidential waste is a pretty simple procedure.

Why is confidential waste disposal important?

Confidential document destruction, and wiping of electronic devices, is vital for ensuring your business does not breach the Data Protection Act 1998. A blunder could cause damage to your company name, create distrust with clients, and land you with a significant fine. Luckily, these mistakes can be avoided if you know how to identify confidential waste, and are fully aware of how to dispose of it in a specialist manner.

What types of information are confidential?

Generally, any platform with personal information either about yourself, your company, or anybody else, is considered to be confidential. This can include:

• Medical information or health records
• Signatures
• Legal information
• Credit card or financial information
• HR documents (e.g. applications, contracts, payroll, wage slips)
• Customer or partner details
• Operational information about your company e.g. strategies, plans

This information can be kept on paper, CDs, computers, or any other electronic device. Whatever medium this information is located on, it needs to be treated as confidential and disposed of accordingly.

How can I dispose of my confidential waste?

Here are our top tips for disposing of confidential waste:

• As an employer, a vital task is to educate your staff on the importance of thoroughly checking documentation and electrical storage before they discard it. If your staff are aware of the implications of an error, they will be more likely to dispose of waste more thoughtfully.
• Always check with your local government’s rules on document destruction, as policies may differ between areas. Generally, shredders are accepted as the surefire technique to destroy sensitive documentation, whilst electrical devices will need to be wiped using specialist equipment. Sometimes the use of cross-cut shredders may be specified to ensure a more thorough destruction.
• Burning confidential waste is not a suitable option for destruction, as the burnt areas are often unequally distributed, and may leave parts of the page still readable. Confidential waste shredding is the only viable option to ensure the documentation is destroyed to completion.
• Only professionals, such as council workers or waste management contractors, should dispose of confidential waste. The experts at Woodford Recycling can ensure all confidential waste is disposed of legally, securely and in total compliance with local guidelines. We are specialists at dealing with large volumes of commercial waste, and can be trusted to take care of your company’s sensitive documentation.

If you have any more questions about confidential waste disposal, please get in touch with the team at Woodford Recycling. Our state of the art facility enables us to dispose and recycle almost 100% of the waste we collect. We provide our services across Cambridgeshire, Huntingdon, Peterborough and surrounding areas.