It's not just about "cutting" or "burning"! What is the right way to dispose of confidential documents now?

It's not just about "cutting" or "burning"! What is the right way to dispose of confidential documents now?

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Easy, eco-friendly, safe, and reliable
If you're going to dispose of it, "dissolution" is the way to go!

Confidential documents, containing information that a company would rather not have revealed to the outside world—such as plans for new businesses, details about product manufacturing technology, business schemes, drawings, customer information, personnel information, and financial status—are truly the lifeblood of a company. Strict management and storage are essential, but careful consideration must also be given to how they are disposed of.

Index

A wide variety of confidential documents

To define confidential documents simply, they are "documents that contain information of paramount importance to a company, and whose confidentiality is absolutely essential."

When we hear the term "confidentiality," we tend to imagine information that we don't want other companies to know, but the scope is not always limited to that. For example, management strategies that are not yet made public should be kept confidential from general employees until the time comes, and it would be problematic if personnel-related data could be freely accessed by employees outside the HR department. Confidentiality applies to both external and internal matters. Although there are no codified regulations in laws and regulations, documents are generally classified into three categories based on their importance: "top secret documents," "confidential documents," and "confidential documents for external use."

ImportancekindsLegend
highTop Secret DocumentThis document contains information directly related to corporate management and is only accessible to a select few, such as the management team.
Unpublished research results, M&A deals, specially assigned projects, undisclosed accounting information, etc.
Confidential documentsDocuments that can only be viewed by people involved in specific departments or projects.
Sales planning, customer information, personnel information, important contracts, procurement price lists, patent applications, etc.
Confidential documentsDocuments that can be shared internally but must not be leaked outside the company.
lowInvoices, quotations, meeting minutes, employee rosters, work rules, etc.

Furthermore, documents other than those created in-house, such as customer lists submitted by business partners, information on joint research, and specifications and drawings not yet made public, as well as digital data not stored in paper form, will be treated as confidential documents depending on their content.

What happens if the contents of a confidential document are leaked?

It would be disastrous if information from highly confidential documents were leaked outside the company. In some cases, it could even threaten the very survival of the company.
If customer data and personnel information, which are considered "confidential documents," are accessible to every employee, then it can be said that personal information protection is not being ensured. From a compliance standpoint, a loss of trust is inevitable.
If "confidential company documents" are leaked, there is a risk that business ideas and other valuable information could be stolen.

Regardless of the scale, the leakage of confidential documents is damaging to a company.

Disposal is just as important as storage.

Confidential documents are protected under laws such as the "Act on the Protection of Personal Information" and the "Unfair Competition Prevention Act." Leaking them is a crime. In the past, there have been cases where former employees were arrested for leaking information to other companies based on confidential documents.
Therefore, companies pay close attention to the management and disposal of confidential documents.

Have you ever accidentally left documents on your desk, leaving them in plain sight for everyone to see?
Confidential documents require strict disposal procedures, at least as stringent as, or even more stringent than, those for storage.
So, what are the actual disposal methods available?

Disposal Method ①-1 Shredding with a Shredder - Do-It-Yourself Method

The most readily available option is probably shredding documents in the office. This is sufficient for small amounts of waste.

However, confidential documents have legally mandated retention periods. Therefore, it's often necessary to dispose of large quantities of documents at once once the retention period has expired. Depending on the shredder's capabilities, it may even be necessary to remove each staple from the documents individually. Spending time and effort on this is inefficient from a labor cost perspective.

Disposal Method ①-2: Shredding with a Shredder - Professional Disposal Method

If you have a large quantity of documents, you can hire a professional company to shred them using a large shredder. You can pack the documents in cardboard boxes and bring them to the factory yourself, or they can pick them up. However, since you generally won't be present during the shredding process, there's a small chance that the shredding staff might unintentionally see the contents of your documents.

If that's a concern, you might consider an "on-site shredding" service where a truck equipped with a large shredder comes to your location. While it's a bit more expensive, it offers greater security as you can dispose of the documents right in front of you and there's no worry about loss or accidents during delivery.

Disposal method ② Burn it

While shredders cut documents into small pieces, the paper itself remains as a physical object. If someone with malicious intent were determined, it's not impossible for them to piece the paper back together and restore it.
Incineration, where documents are brought to an incineration facility and completely destroyed, was previously the mainstream method of document disposal. One of its advantages is that even large quantities can be disposed of quickly.

However, the downside is that incineration releases a large amount of carbon dioxide. Paper recycling is also not possible. In recent years, paper made from recyclable materials has become increasingly difficult to obtain.
Due to growing environmental awareness, society is moving towards "de-incineration" of waste overall. From a CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) perspective, this is not a method that can be actively recommended.

 meritDisadvantages
Shredder (by yourself)Low cost and can be processed in-houseIt becomes more work and inefficient.
Shredder (service provider)Can be disposed of in large quantities at onceI have some concerns about security.
incinerationDocuments can be completely destroyed.Not environmentally friendly

When you compare them, each has its own advantages and disadvantages.
Therefore, a new disposal method called "dissolution treatment" is attracting attention.

Disposal method ③ Melt it down

Dissolution is a disposal method that uses a machine called a pulper to mix with water and finely crush the material with sharp blades, completely liquefying the document.
Moreover, all you have to do is pack the documents into the special cardboard box and hand it over. There's no need to remove clips, staples, or clear files. Since the cardboard box is dissolved without being opened, outsiders will not be able to see the contents, so it's safe from an information security standpoint.
Moreover, after being dissolved, it is recycled as a raw material for products such as toilet paper.

How to choose a dissolution service provider

When choosing a card dissolution service, check the level of security measures in place. A system that issues a "dissolution certificate" and allows you to witness the dissolution process if desired will provide greater peace of mind.
Furthermore, be sure to check whether they can accommodate your specific requirements, such as the availability of dedicated vehicles and sorting facilities, and the visualization of the traceability (transportation status) of confidential documents to be disposed of.

Nippon Express's confidential document recycling service (Eco-Recycle Service) ensures safe and reliable disposal that meets all of these requirements. For those who wish to dispose of documents more frequently, we also offer Eco-Recycle @ Mini, which is designed for small amounts of document disposal.

We also offer a one-stop service from storage to disposal.

If you integrate with a service that stores documents before they are discarded, you can streamline your operations.

Nippon Express's media storage service (security shelters) allows you to store confidential documents in storage facilities equipped with security cameras, earthquake-resistant, and fire-resistant structures. Access control is also managed with dual authentication using fingerprints and IDs. It meets the needs of those who "don't have storage space in-house," "want to entrust everything from storage to disposal to one-stop service," and "want complete security." We can store not only paper documents but also electronically stored data along with the recording media. This helps to mitigate the risk of document loss or damage due to natural disasters, as well as the loss of backup data.

If you want to shred and store confidential documents

Confidential item disposal and recycling service (Eco-Recycling Service)

Media storage service (security shelter)

For digitizing confidential documents
"Document Digitization Service"

For important and confidential documents that should not be discarded, we recommend digitizing them instead of keeping them in paper form. Nippon Express's document digitization service, "Smart Scanning," scans and digitizes documents, and handles everything from document transportation and digitization to delivery with a robust security system.
For digitizing documents in small quantities (such as office files), you can use Smart Scanning Easy.

For safe, secure, and smooth confidential document management, entrust it to Nippon Express.

If you want to digitize confidential documents

Document digitization service (smart scanning)

Smart Scanning Easy

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