Most Americans are familiar with the perils of identity theft, but few know how to protect themselves from predators eager to get their hands on sensitive information, according to Scottie Swafford.
Mr. Swafford, who heads the Chattanooga chapter of ARMA, a nonprofit group focusing on records and data management, has found a way to celebrate Earth Day.
To raise awareness about the danger of careless information storage and improper disposal of personal records, ARMA is holding a free event from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. at Hamilton Place, where members of the public can bring up to three boxes of personal papers and watch equipment of document storage giant Iron Mountain destroy it, Mr. Swafford said.
"They do cross-shredding, pulverizing, chemical destruction, and they can use incinerators, too," he said.
The 32-member Chattanooga chapter of ARMA has won chapter of the year four years in a row for its efforts to inform local people on safe document disposal, Mr. Swafford said.
"At the event, we'll provide services on how to destroy information, and on how to manage your personal electronic documents as well," he said.
Acceptable types of documents include office papers and file folders of any color, with staples, paper clips, rubber bands and binders left on. But cardboard, common trash, hazardous materials, plastic, metal and compact disks will not be accepted.
Free disposal eventAcceptable materials* All office papers, any color* File folders, any color* No need to remove staples, paper clips, rubber bands and small binders.Cannot be shredded* Cardboard* Common trash* Hazardous materials* Plastic or metals* CDs, DVDsIf you go* Date/Time: Today, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.* Location: Hamilton Place Mall parking lot across from Sears in the lower parking levelSource: ARMA (formerly Association of Records Managers and Administrators)
Mr. Swafford said consumers won't want to destroy certain types of documents, some of which must be kept indefinitely.
"Keep birth certificates, medical records that are three to four years old or newer, passports, and working documents," he said. "But you can get rid of tax information older than three years, info on deceased family members, anything with personal information and bank and credit card statements older than a year."
Said Chris Akers, a sales representative with Iron Mountain: "People will drive in with their stuff, they'll stuff it into a bin, the bin will go into the truck, their stuff will get shredded, and the bin comes back out.
"We have over 250 trucks nationwide that we use to support our shred plants all over the country, and sometimes we use these trucks when bigger businesses need us to come out to them."
Boston-based Iron Mountain has 140,000 customers worldwide, and partners with ARMA's 10,000 member to raise awareness about safe document handling, he said.
"We view ARMA as a real partner, we have a lot of the same goals in mind," Mr. Akers added.