Insurance industry at risk from information theft, says Shred-it

It is estimated that identity fraud affects more than 2000 people worldwide each day but according to Shred-it Dubai, the UAE's leading secure document destruction solution provider, the threat of fraud can be effectively prevented by secure document shredding.

"Secure disposal of expired documents, like insurance policies, that contain vital private and proprietary information can prevent frauds and identity thefts," said Stuart Mansbridge, General Manager, Shred-it, during a presentation to the Insurance Special Interest Group of The British Business Group in Dubai.

"Not only is waste paper a rich source of information for competitors and fraudsters, but stolen papers can also jeopardise client relationships. Failure to completely destroy private and proprietary data could even risk criminal and civil prosecution.

"Shred-it's secure document shredding enables businesses to be absolutely certain that expired or temporary documents do not fall into the wrong hands."

Shred-it guarantees confidentiality in document destruction through effective waste assessment and strict controls.

"Today, most transactions occur without any personal contact based on names, account numbers and passwords. This can give rise to fraud if a criminal gains access to a policy holder's personal and confidential files. For instance, with enough information, they can force the insurance firm to fraudulently pay out loans against accumulated policy values," said Mansbridge.

"Shred-it's document management professionals are trained to identify areas where information maybe accidentally disclosed. This helps in assessing what constitutes sensitive information and which departments need to be careful about document disposal. Shred-it then places locked paper security bins in the organisation from which documents are retrieved on a fixed schedule and destroyed under strict control."

Shred-it can also destroy confidential information held on CDs, floppy disks as well as hard-copy paper, beyond recognition.