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plow_in

What do you shred?

Plow_In
17 years ago

My DH is getting fed up with what I give him to shred (this is one of the few jobs he can do around the house, and I hate to take it totally away from him, although he gets a backache from it). Is it recommended to shred our names & address from letters, catalogs, etc? I particularly don't like just tossing out things that have my first and/or maiden name on them. I have a friend who shreds everything with her name on it, but she has a name that could result in sexual harrassment. I don't.

DH hasn't even found the basket containing all the tiny mailing lables that I've been saving for him! Is all this shredding necessary? If so, I'll have to buy another shredder for downstairs; we're getting overrun!

Comments (23)

  • jenathegreat
    17 years ago

    I shred things with credit card number or SSN. That's about it. I'd go insane trying to shred everything! I don't even shred utility bills.

    I can understand shredding catalog labels if you've ordered from there before and they have your CC# stored (that's if you can reorder with just the customer number on a catalog? I don't know, I've never tried).

    But here's the thing... Your name and address is pretty much public record. It's in everything from the phone book to state/county real estate records that can be looked up at the courthouse or even online. You send out your name and address all the time - on letters, to pay bills, you give it to catalog companies. It's nothing secret, so why shred it?

  • quiltglo
    17 years ago

    I agree with jen. We are in the phone book, on the Internet, in the town tax base all with addresses. My DH hands out his business card to everyone, so nothing is a secret. If someone wants to know what our electric bill was last month, I don't care. Our health insurance finally quit having my SS# as the policy #, so I don't even have to bother with those anymore.

    The only time I was concerned about my address and phone # getting out was when I was a single mom and teaching at a prison. I didn't want to open the front door to find one of my students standing there. It was during the pre-Internet days, so finding me online wasn't an issue.

    I do rip off the name from the magazines before I donate just because I feel funny leaving them on. DH leaves his on. But we don't shred the labels, just throw them away.

    If you are really concerned about identity theft, I would have all mail sent to a PO box. We've had more problems here with people stealing things before we get them out of the mailbox and then they have your cc #, SS#, bank statements, etc.

    Gloria

  • wantoretire_did
    17 years ago

    I keep my shredder right under my desk kneehole and shred anything with name, address, and of course any other personal info., especially now with all the catalogues coming. Don't forget the order blank on the inside with info on it. It only takes a minute. Same goes for old bills of ANY sort.

    I used to save it in a "shredding pile" and do a marathon shredding, but found that it's so much quicker to do it daily, as the junk comes in. Sure cuts down on the clutter.

    A couple of months ago I shredded all of our Explanation of Benefits for med. insurance up to Dec. 2005. What a waste of paper they are. I freed up a lot of space in the file drawer.

    Rather safe than sorry; anything with name, address and of course, any further info, even sale code numbers, and all that. I drive DH crazy, retrieving stuff out of the trash that goes there before I can catch it, but I know that if anything happened, I would be the one left with picking up the pieces. No thanks.

    Carol

  • marge727
    17 years ago

    Since I have an office that gets magazines I leave the old ones in my dentist's office, on the bus, etc. I have never had a problem. I also have never had somebody come in wanting to meet me or be a client because they saw my name on a magazine. I do shred those miserable credit card offers but I just shred the part with the application.
    I have a website with my photo on it, address and phone number. I do get clients from it. In my opinion the biggest problem is SPAM! We should all join together and try to combat that. Junk mail is a small problem compared to SPAM!
    when we have old checks, we burn them. They make great fireplace kindling.
    When I have clients who come in that are the victims of identity theft it has never been a complete stranger. I really don't see what anybody could do with a piece of mail that you received with your name and address unless its a preapproved credit card application.
    I put a fraud alert on my credit because somebody had access to our health records and personal information at the hospital (they were arrested for stealing the info of lots of people)
    You can put the fraud alert on. That way when you apply for new credit, they have to double check with you before issuing it. I don't know if that always happens but it has so far.
    I don't order from catalogs where they have my credit card on file.
    Plow, I think you are over cautious because I can order the name and address of everybody within 20 miles of me by requesting it from the title company or I can go online with the county recorder. There is a reverse directory available which might not show your phone number--it might say "unlisted" but it might have your name and address. For $75 I can get the social security number, and for $250 I could get your life history (divorces, property, etc.) We do it all the time if we are doing a probate and want to make sure we have all the assets of our clients.

  • marie26
    17 years ago

    marge, I'm shocked that you can pay $75.00 to get my social security number. I know that since it's used for many health plans, it's not secret. Heck, even some utilities and cable companies are asking for it. But to be able to buy it? That's wrong.

  • xantippe
    17 years ago

    I shred everything with our names on it, as well as anything with our address, etc. I figure it just takes seconds, so why not? If you watch the Discovery Channel show "It Takes a Thief" (in which two former thieves show normal people how to protect their homes), the two hosts always talk about how all sorts of things can be used to take your identity, including business cards, checks, statements, etc. They want you to keep ALL of that stuff in a safe. Yes, even statements for bills. A clever thief doesn't need much.

  • marge727
    17 years ago

    Ok Marie, I won't buy yours. However we run credit checks whenever we rent an apartment to a tenant and that only costs $28. We get all the info from them and can check it. Their social security number comes up of course. I do have their signed permission to credit check. But I can bet that its possible to run the same credit check without permission. Look at your credit report and all the inquiries you haven't authorized.
    There have always been phone books with name and address. There have always been reverse directories that businesses buy. there are mailing lists of people (name and address) in various occupations you can buy for 1 Cent per name. I worked for advertising agencies when I was in college that bought lists of people who subscribed to the chicago Tribune so they could send them junk mail to vote for Nixon.
    The only thing thats new is this fear that people are stealing identities.
    As for using somebody's business card to steal their identity--you can have business cards made with any name on them or any business, and cheap too.
    The best way to combat all this is --we use few credit cards, check them carefully; and check the bank statements.

  • talley_sue_nyc
    17 years ago

    and, check your credit report yearly.

  • steve_o
    17 years ago

    If you watch the Discovery Channel show "It Takes a Thief" (in which two former thieves show normal people how to protect their homes), the two hosts always talk about how all sorts of things can be used to take your identity, including business cards, checks, statements, etc. They want you to keep ALL of that stuff in a safe. Yes, even statements for bills. A clever thief doesn't need much.

    And that's exactly why I don't worry about it so much. It's a matter of public record that you live where you live. You pretty much cannot have insurance or have insurance pay for anything unless you give up some privacy. I cannot see a sales person or such refusing to offer a business card ("Sorry -- someone might steal the information."). I don't know where you live, but in my county, I can look up the property tax paid by my neighbors -- for free. All I need is a good guess at the street address. For a few bucks, I can ask the department of motor vehicles to tell me who owns the car with license plate ABC 123. And I cannot protect myself against the company or government whose lax security policies allow employees to lose laptops filled with my "private" information.

    To be shredding up magazine subscription offers and old Dean and Deluca catalog order forms -- when the valuable info on my life is almost freely-tradeable -- seems to me like shoveling sand against the tide. The energy and time is better spent on making sure only the necessary folks get their paws on the good stuff.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Electronic Frontier Foundation

  • marge727
    17 years ago

    I agree with Steve --and thats why I don't worry about everything. I do not have a debt card though and make sure I use ball point pen on checks rather than ink. I knew somebody who put their mail out for the mailman and it was stolen and the check washed and rewritten.

    I notice on the news that 65 employees of a meat packing plant in 6 states used other identities because they were illegal aliens so I recommend that you also check your social security statement to see if they list jobs you never worked at recently. That could cause a problem with IRS demanding you pay tax on that extra income. That happened to me once and I requested records. I was able to point out that somebody was working fulltime in Texas harvesting citrus under my SSI number and I was working in California fulltime as an attorney. Problem solved.
    I would be willing to bet that 65 people employed by the same company, all using somebody else's SSI number is no coincidence and I would bet they didn't get those digging in the trash, or ordering the information online. My guess is that somebody who either got workers or worked directly for the company got the info from one source. That could be applications the real men filled out or class enrollments in safety classes. The real people lived close enough for one to get arrested mistakenly. We'll see how it was done.

  • jessyf
    17 years ago

    Don't forget to keep your shredder in top shape with shredder oil - available at any local office supply store. I apply mine in a line across a piece of paper and shred that.

    Cut/pasted from somewhere on the net:

    Do I have to oil my Paper Shredder?

    Yes... Paper Shredders need oil

    All Paper Shredders need shredder oil to continue to function properly. It is very common for paper dust to build up inside of the cutting assembly. After time, this sediment can become packed together like cement. Oil serves to soften this packed dust, which allows the movement of the cutting head. The proper movement of this head will push the dust out of the paper shredder. The finer the cut the paper shredder makes, the more oil it will need. Small particle cut shredders and D.O.D. spec machines require a lot of oil, and for these machines we recommend an Automatic Lubricating device.

    Paper shredders, as with all electromechanical equipment, will not operate efficiently unless they are properly maintained. Periodic oiling is necessary to allow the shredder to operate at maximum efficiency. Frequency of oiling will vary greatly with the volume of use and the shred size. A shredder with a 1/4" shred width used only 1 to 2 hours per week will only require a weekly oiling. A crosscut shredder, however, should be oiled every 1/2 hour of shredding time.

    The procedure for oiling a shredding machine is very simple and can be done by any operator. The oil is packaged in a squeeze bottle and is applied directly onto the cutting head in a fine stream. This is done through the paper entry throat. Take 1-2 seconds to oil from one side of the opening to the other. Turn the machine in reverse for about 10-15 seconds to allow the oil to transfer to all parts of the cutting head. The final step is to shred a few sheets of paper to remove any excess oil.

    Shredder oil is the only lubricant which should be used on your shredder. Shredder oil is of special formulation which leaves no residue on the cutters. Other oils will attract paper dust and in turn clog the cutting head.

  • trilobite
    17 years ago

    I don't shred anything. I tear up credit card offers, that's about it. Incidentally, I'm also the only person to handle and dispose of my trash before it reaches the transfer station (we don't have curbside trash pickup).

    Most of the identity theft cases I've heard of had to do with nogoodnik family members, professional jobs like Steve mentions, or fraud (people freely giving the information to the wrong person). Spending a lot of time shredding strikes me more as superstition than anything else.

    I do strike out my name and address on magazine labels before giving them to the library. I live in a very small town so I have (probably paranoid) visions of nosy types speculating about my reading habits. ;)

  • wantoretire_did
    17 years ago

    I've had my shredder for at least 6 years and have never used oil. Seems to be much ado about nothing important.

  • quiltglo
    17 years ago

    We oil ours on a pretty regular basis. It gets heavy usage for client information. Runs much smoother after a bit of oil. Maybe a machine with just household usage wouldn't need it.

    Gloria

  • talley_sue_nyc
    17 years ago

    I never used to shred anything; I just tore stuff in half, through the account number, and tossed it into different trash basket sin the house.

  • spiritual_gardner
    17 years ago

    Shredding is part of a monthly ritual that I have. I collect everything and sort it weekly, then monthly total what I need to keep for my business, then shred it the following month (just in case I need something).

    This system keeps paper from piling up and my books are always up to date, plus I can access records easily if I need to for a month.

    SG

  • Plow_In
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    I think you're right about addresses being available so easily - so there's not much need to shred all that stuff. I can still give DH the papers with personal info on them - he can shred to his heart's content. I've bought a permanent marker for little pieces of paper that I feel I absolutely must shred (!), and that will save him from back-aches, I hope. Thanks, everybody, for your input.

  • yogacat
    17 years ago

    I shred everything that has anything more than my name on it. I even shred receipts that have part of an account number on them. It doesn't take much money or effort to gather a great deal of information about a person, but I don't see any reason to make it easier.

  • marie26
    17 years ago

    This is sort of off-topic but i thought worth mentioning. A magazine pointed out that a person should check their childrens' credit reports since thieves are using these ss numbers to steal identities.

  • greenfumbers4fowbers
    17 years ago

    "I really don't see what anybody could do with a piece of mail that you received with your name and address unless its a preapproved credit card application."

    What about those stupid blank checks that some credit card companies are forever sending out? Those annoy me. There's no way I'd use one, and at least one of my accounts sends new ones as frequently as monthly, more often around the holidays.

  • bonelady
    17 years ago

    I shred items with account numbers and SSN. That it. Why shred address labels? that information is pretty much out there and I don't really care if someone knows that I get a catalog from some place or that my electric bill was $100!

  • western_pa_luann
    17 years ago

    "What about those stupid blank checks that some credit card companies are forever sending out? Those annoy me. There's no way I'd use one, and at least one of my accounts sends new ones as frequently as monthly, more often around the holidays."

    Don't complain about them... opt out of getting them! I haven't received one in years.

  • mar_cia
    17 years ago

    Both of my parents died in the last two years. We are cleaning out all of their paperwork and my husband has been burning up the shredder -- shredding all their medical records, bank statements etc. This seems crazy. They are dead !! Oh well.......its keeping him busy. That shredder is so noisy !

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