What Shredding Security Level Do You Need?

Many companies shred documents to ensure that sensitive information remains secure. However, if you’re not using the right shredding security levels, you may be putting yourself, your customers or your employees at risk.

Understanding Shredder Security

Shredding levels are standardized by the German Institute of Standardization and are called DIN levels after the organization’s German name. The DIN 32757 standard for paper is divided into five levels:

• Level 1: “General Document Destruction” shreds standard home and business documents into 12-millimeter paper strips and is suitable for general use.
• Level 2: “Destruction of Sensitive Internal Company and/or Personal Documents Requiring Higher Security than Level 1” creates 3.9- to 5.8-millimeter strips or a cross-cut of 8-by-80 millimeters. This level is used in small offices to shred invoices, photocopies, printouts and other documents.
• Level 3: “Destruction of Confidential Personal & Business Documents” shreds internal company documents, personal data and customer information into 2-millimieter paper shreds or a cross-cut of 3.9-by-50 millimeters that looks like confetti.
• Level 4: “Destruction of Confidential Documents Crucial to a Company’s Existence” is often used by hospitals to conform to HIPAA laws and is also standard for bank documents and extremely sensitive company information.
• Level 5: “Destruction of Secret Documents as Required for Government Offices or Important Research,” used for documents pertaining to government and military security, reduces paper to particles measuring 0.8-by-11 millimeters.

A sixth level, designated as High Security Destruction of Top Secret Documents, shreds paper so small that it resembles dust and was once considered the most secure level. However, the recently released DIN 66399 standards are making changes to paper security. The update includes three protection classes, six material classifications and seven shredding security levels. Shredders are being updated to meet these standards and provide greater protection for individuals and businesses.

Shredding Services from Proshred Tampa

Having in-house shredders that meet the required standards for your industry is no guarantee that all of your sensitive documents will be properly disposed of. Employees may not always take the time to destroy all confidential information. On-site shredding services from Proshred Tampa guarantee the right shredding levels for the data your company handles and holds a combination of ISO 9001 and NAID AAA certifications that’s unique to the industry. Staff members are trained in the procedures necessary to meet rigorous certification requirements.

Using mobile shredding trucks and secure document consoles, Proshred Tampa ensures that nobody sees your paperwork during the shredding process. Other paper is mixed with yours as it’s being shredded at the highest security level required. At the end of the shredding process, you’ll receive a Certificate of Destruction as proof that all documents were completely destroyed.

You can trust Proshred Tampa to handle your documents securely through every step of the shredding process. Our professional services are backed up by experience and trusted certifications that guarantee the utmost attention to proper shredding security levels. Choose Proshred Tampa for all of your shredding needs and rest assured that your sensitive information will remain safe.