Compliant Document Destruction

Shred On Site Melbourne and Shred On Site Geelong specialise in shredding your confidential documents ON SITE and ensure you have policies and procedures to comply with the Federal Government’s Privacy Amendment (Enhancement Privacy Protection) Act 2012. The Privacy Act now has penalties of $1.7 million for breaches for non-compliant document destruction.

At Shred On Site, we are fully conversant with the new Privacy Act and the requirements around document destruction. Australian Privacy Principal 11 (APP 11) explains how a business needs to take reasonable steps to protect Personal Information from misuse, interference and loss, as well as unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.

Directors, owners and/or senior managers of a company need to securely destroy or de-identify the Personal Information they hold once the information is no longer needed for any purpose for which the information may be used or disclosed under the Australian Privacy Act.

An exception is where information must be retained by law or a court/tribunal order. Document shredding takes place on site with all documents shredded before they leave your premises. (This service is provided on a regular basis through Shred On Site Pty Ltd.)

Shred On Site Customer Induction Program

All new customers of Shred On Site are provided with a comprehensive customer induction program which includes advice on the day-to-day management of confidential documents and how to set up a compliant document destruction process.

This process includes a range of steps including:

1. Develop a Privacy Policy

Write a company policy on how you manage the process of destroying personal information. This could be extended to include a ‘shred all’ policy to cover commercially sensitive information as well.

A business is responsible for personal information from creation to destruction, even if the destruction process is conducted by a third party at another location. Include that this is the reason why your business has chosen an ‘on site’ destruction service where all documents are destroyed BEFORE they leave your business premises.

2. Document the Procedure

Document the procedure that your employees will follow to identify, store and then destroy personal information. Explain how all redundant documents are placed in a locked security bin and shredded on site by a trained and experienced third party (i.e. Shred On Site Pty Ltd).

3. Train Your Employees

Organise a meeting to discuss this compliant policy and explain the destruction process. Include the compliant document destruction process in the induction for all new employees.

Invite employees to bring in their own confidential documents from home that they no longer need to keep. This is a great opportunity for them to see the importance of this service and to protect them from potential identity theft as well.

4. Have a Regular On Site Document Destruction Service

Keep each Certificate of Destruction to prove your business has taken reasonable steps by using a regular (e.g. weekly, fortnightly or monthly) on site compliant document destruction service.

Call Now for Advice on How to Set Up a Compliant Document Destruction Program

If you have privacy concerns or if privacy compliance is important to your business, then we can help. Call us now on 1300 55 88 76 to find out how.