Unfortunately, we all have to be a little paranoid when it comes to identity theft. Credit cards get stolen, computers get hacked and dumpsters get raided, all in an attempt to gain people’s person information. Private information such as credit card numbers, social security numbers, bank account information and various bills can be used to steal your identity. Many businesses and home offices have another layer of information to worry about: confidential documents. These confidential documents can hold information regarding clients or the company itself. Either way, the company is responsible for protecting such data. What You Can Do to Protect Yourself Paper shredders are a simple solution to destroying many of the documents and materials that hold private information. While digging through your garbage is not the only way someone can steal your identity, it is a major source.

Businesses big and small, educational institutions, churches, homes, banks and government agencies all use paper shredders to protect private documents and information. Lucky for consumers, there are paper shredders available to meet the needs of everyone. Personal shredders all the way up to industrial shredders are on the market and available to purchase. Depending on the actual space you have for the shredder and your specific security concerns, you should be able to identify a shredder that fits your needs. Paper Shredder Choices Like binding machines, laminators and just about every other office product, paper shredders come in many different forms. These are some of the most common:  Industrial: Industrial High Capacity shredders can handle a high number of documents. They won’t overheat even when you insert large stacks of paper simultaneously.  Cross-Cut: Cross-cut shredders make both vertical and horizontal cuts. This type is usually more expensive than a strip-cut shredder. However, these shredders are more secure than strip cut varieties.  Strip-Cut: Strip-cut paper shredders slice the paper into long pieces. This is the most basic and prevalent type of shredder. These machines are generally able to shred a large amount of documents quickly.  CD/DVD: There are also shredders available to destroy CDs and DVDs. Nowadays, many people keep more information on disks than on paper. These durable and heavy-duty shredders will render the disks unusable by slicing them into pieces.

Choosing the Right Paper Shredder Office product manufacturers offer a wide selection of paper shredders.

A quality company will be able to sell you whatever office products you need-paper shredders, binding machines, binding supplies, coil bindings, wire bindings and laminators, all in one fell swoop. New businesses will sometimes buy all of these products at once. For most, however, it is a gradual build-up to outfit a business, home office, church or school. Once you find an office product company you trust, make sure they offer guarantees on each product. Promises of good customer service and product repair are important when it comes these products as well. This is especially true with something like a paper shredder since it may mean the difference between protecting your personal information and becoming the victim of identity theft. Most consumers are surprised by the fairly minimal amount of information it takes to steal someone’s personal information or corrupt the integrity of a business’ security. Taking simple steps, such as purchasing a paper shredder, can help you avoid a lot of pain and suffering in the future. That seems well worth the small investment.