Understand and prevent data theft

The theft of personal data is a continuous and growing problem not only for the individuals involved, but also for companies and organizations in charge of data protection. Although there are various personal and business security measures available, data breaches and thefts still happen.

Data thieves may use personal data to drain bank accounts, max out credit cards, or commit other crimes under the guise of false identities.

So what are some of the cases that illustrate the seriousness of data theft and what is a secure solution to ensure sensitive personal data is out of the hands of criminals?

Data protection errors

These are some examples of the type of confidential information that has been lost or stolen, but whose security could have been better protected or destroyed.

In 2006, waste paper to be used in a Scottish National Theater production was found to contain data on vulnerable children and their families, and Scottish Water documents detailing customers’ bank details. A Glasgow recycling company supplied the theater with document bags to use as props, but did not check their contents.

Between 2008 and 2009, thousands of patient medical records were lost or stolen from NHS hospitals and surgeries across Scotland. Much of the data was stored on PCs or memory cards and included documents, letters and videos of patient examinations.

In 2008, X-rays of patients and discarded documents were found in the abandoned Law Hospital in Lanarkshire. The fact that the hospital closed in 2001 and that sensitive data was left on the site is a violation of the Data Protection Act, and hospital administrators should have ensured that anything containing patient details was removed or saved.

An investigation by the Sunday Mail in 2006 revealed that intact bank documents were thrown away in bins outside the branches. The documents contained data such as names, addresses, dates of birth, account numbers, classification codes, and secret passwords. Old bank cards were also found and although they were cut in half, all personal details were visible.

Data Protection Methods

It is a legal requirement for companies and organizations to ensure the security of personal information. Millions are spent each year on security systems to comply with this law, and while the physical theft of documents and computers means sensitive data is no longer secure, much can be done to prevent data from falling into the wrong hands.

The general rule of thumb should be to know what you’re throwing away, and if you’re even the least bit concerned that it contains sensitive data, dispose of it properly. Too many people continue to place intact documents in their containers.

Bin, skip, or dumpster diving is the practice of raking bins for food, miscellaneous household or work items, or, for criminals, anything that contains personal information that they can use for their gain.

Whether on a computer drive or in document form, the only way to fully ensure that data is kept secure is to destroy it. Businesses often revamp their computer networks by replacing desktop PCs and laptops. Often these older machines are resold with reformatted hard drives.

Even if a hard drive is wiped, there is data recovery software that can access some residual information. Professional shredding companies can render hard drives, memory cards, and other storage media useless by either crushing or shredding them.

Simple home or office shredding machines will shred paper documents, but many are of the “strip cut” type. These shred the paper into long, thin strips that, contrary to popular belief, can be pieced together to reshape the original document. Industrial “cross cut” and “micro cut” shredders are much more effective as they cut documents into confetti or tiny particles.

Hiring a shredding company is a good way to ensure that sensitive data is secure. Internal security for companies is extremely important and charging employees to shred documents gives them access to personal and business data. A mobile shredding company eliminates this risk and will also provide a document or storage media destruction guarantee.