How NOT to Destroy Paper Documents

April 5, 2021 at 1:13 pm by Amanda Canale

In the age of Big Media, it’s easy for some to say, “Paper is dead! Everything is digital now!” Well, not quite. Even as we get further and further into the digital age, not everyone (or everything) has gone paperless. While the majority of our information and data has gone digital, there are very literal paper trails linking our identities to our private information. From medical records and birth certificates to mailed credit card offers and business contracts, there is a plethora of paper documents out in the world that hold some of our most private and confidential information. It is this reason in particular why we at SEM stress that any end-of-life paper documents containing sensitive or confidential information should be destroyed securely. Join us as we break down some of the methods that should be avoided.

Cutting and/or Shredding by Hand

As satisfying as ripping up physical spam mail can be, making it your primary shredding method is not recommended. While this method may be enough for mail or documents not containing private, confidential, or personally identifying information (PII), it will not ensure that the information cannot be pieced back together. Unfortunately, when media or data of any nature is not destroyed with high security end-of-life destruction equipment, there is always a risk that some of the data may be recovered. Take for instance the DARPA Shredder Challenge where people competed to reassemble shred particles, or our previous blog, A History of Data Destruction.

Shredded paper with text.

Recycling and/or Throwing Away

While we support the green initiative in wanting to recycle your end-of-life confidential paper documents, unfortunately this cannot always be securely done. For starters, the majority of our waste and recycling ends up in landfills and dumpsters which are typically gold mines for hackers and thieves. In addition, recycling and waste are not transported securely, making it easy for people to intercept and have access to your most sensitive and confidential information.

It is reported that, on average, recyclables and waste sit on sorting floors for up to four weeks before finally being destroyed. Given that length of time, anything can happen! It is important to note that after this period, remnants of your information are not magically sorted; dozens of employees’ sort what the machines cannot and have direct access to your data. By opting for a seemingly eco-friendlier alternative, you will unfortunately only put your data at more risk.

nsa-listed-paper-shredder

It is always best to err on the side of caution when it comes to end-of-life data destruction. When it comes to specifically destroying paper documents, it is best practice to use a paper shredder. By adopting a shredding policy, companies and organizations can take preventative measures to ensure that end-of-life confidential information does not fall into the wrong hands.

That’s why at SEM, we want you to future proof the destruction of your most sensitive and confidential data with one of our high security paper shredders, the SEM Model 344. The Model 344 offers an even more secure shred size that we like to call P-7+. This device is the only high security paper shredder on the market that offers a particle size of 0.8mm x 2.5mm (that is 50% smaller than the current National Security Agency requirement!) This compact, portable, energy saving option is listed on the NSA/CSS Evaluated Products List and has a throughput of 12 reams of paper per hour when feeding five sheets at a time.

By opting for in-house data destruction methods, you and your company or agency are making the most cost-effective, safe, and secure decision. It is also important to remember that a data breach is a data breach, no matter the level of impact. At SEM we have an array of high-quality NSA listed/CUI and unclassified paper shredders to meet any regulation. Any one of our exceptional sales team members are more than happy to help answer any questions you may have and help determine which machine will best meet your destruction needs.

Asking the Right Questions when Buying a Shredder

December 10, 2020 at 2:02 pm by SEM

How many times have you walked into a store looking for a particular item only to find too many varieties? For instance, you need a particular pencil for a certain project you are working on; you aren’t sure if a mechanical pencil or an old fashioned number 2 pencil will work. Or, if you decide to go into a car dealer to buy a new vehicle you may have several questions to ask the salesman. You will want to do your research to decide what type of vehicle to purchase and what questions to ask. Buying a shredder can be similar, even if it may seem like a straightforward product line. So it is best to prepare and you should know which questions to ask before heading in!

The first question to ask is; what kind of shredder do I need to meet my security requirements?

There are basically three different kinds of shredders. All three produce different shred sizes.

The first is a basic STRIP-CUT shredder. It will shred the paper into strips that are usually the length of the paper shredding. The second is a cross-cut which further cuts the strips into smaller particles. The question to ask here is; how secure do I want to shred my information? A strip cut shredder will cut the paper into usually 1/4 inch or wider strips by the length of the paper.These can be easily put back together. Will these strips give you enoughsecurity? If not then:

A CROSS-CUT shredder (SEM Cross Cut Paper Shredders) will further cut the paper-length strips into smaller strips (i.e. 1/4” by 1-7/8”). While still possible to reconstruct the paper, it is highly unlikely. Again ask yourself…will this give me enough security? If not then:

 

A HIGH SECURITY CROSS-CUT shredder is regulated by the National Security Agency (NSA) to shred particles no larger than 1 x 5 millimeters in size. This is
basically the size of a pencil mark. These particles have been determined by the NSA to be terminal destruction. This means they can’t be reconstructed by any method in any way. Learn more about SEM High Security Shredders.

Now that you know the different types of shredders it’s important to know a few other additional points. What is the volume of media that needs to be destroyed? Just a few pages here and there or a consistent flow every day of information?

Additionally, location is important – knowing what size space you are working with is key to finding the correct shredder for your office or space. You may even come to the conclusion a bigger solution is needed, like a SEM paper disintegrator!

Finally, check to see if you have to meet any data destruction regulations or requirements. Do you need to meet the previously mentioned NSA standard? Does the machine have to be HIPAA compliant? Finding out if your line of work or industry has regulations is also an important thing to know ahead of time.

Always do your homework in order to know exactly what questions to ask your security professional before buying a shredder, or any product! We at SEM are ready to answer any questions and are the security professionals and have been for over 50 years. Contact us today to learn more.

How Much Paper Can a Shredder Really Shred?

February 27, 2018 at 10:52 am by SEM

One of the first things one might consider in specifying a paper shredder is its capacity- how many sheets can you feed at once? How quickly will it shred the paper? Together, those factors determine the overall throughput of the machine. The capacity can be stated in sheets, reams, or pounds per hour.

The capacity of paper shredders widely varies. So, one might wonder why paper shredders have the capacities that they have. Why do their capacities vary? Why don’t they have higher capacities? What are the limits?

One of the biggest factors that determines the capacity of a paper shredder is its cut size. Consider this; a strip cut shredder with 1/8″ cut will turn a standard sheet of paper into 68 strips. Now, consider a general purpose cross-cut shredder, with a common cut size of 5/32″ x 1 5/32″ (aka 4mm x 40mm). That machine will turn a sheet of paper into about 515 pieces.

Clearly, a cross-cut shredder must apply a lot more power to make the additional cuts compared to a strip cut shredder. That means that for the same size machine, a cross-cut shredder will have a lower throughput versus a strip cut version. A given motor can only supply a limited amount of power to the job. The bottom line is that the smaller the cut, the smaller the stack of paper one can feed.

One can, however, get smaller. A high security NSA listed cross-cut paper shredder gets a paper shredder particle 1mm x 5mm cut size. These shredders cut a standard sheet of paper into about 12,000 bits. This cut size requires enormously more power to accomplish versus a general purpose crosscut. These shredders require feeding even smaller stacks of paper.

Office style paper shredders have these sorts of ranges for throughput:

Strip Cut: 10 sheets to 50 sheets

General Purpose Cross-cut: 8 sheets to 45 sheets

High Security Cross-cut: 3 sheets to 12 sheets

The high ends of these ranges represent the most paper that is (so far) mechanically possible to shred using a 120 volt wall current. Because circuit sizes are typically limited to 20 amps, there is a ceiling on the maximum electrical power, and in turn a limit on the maximum capacity of these machines. Sometimes shredders are advertised with specifications that are a bit outside of this range, but the real world throughputs for regular office type paper will fall right around the levels noted above.

When shredding paper even smaller than the high security level SEM also has a solution. The SEM Model 344 is a high security cross cut shredder that cuts below the 1mm x 5mm size to a mere 0.8mm by 2.5mm cut. The capacity falls in the middle of the high security average, being rated at 8 sheets per pass by the NSA.

So what capacity are you looking for? For every security level there are a lot of options out there. If you feel like you still have questions always feel free to reach out to one of our sales representatives or contact us at the chat bubble below!