This may shock the previous posters, but… I just throw mine in the trash. I don’t think the minuscule risk of anything happening is worth the (low) cost, space used or time taken to use a shredder.
I must admit, shredding does sound like fun. But I’m a bit surprised that shredding and burning seem to be the only 2 practical ways to dispose of this stuff, and burning really isn’t all that practical.
Well, the motivation has faded. I’ll just have to wait till my piss and punk reserve replenishes itself (probably by early Spring) when I get a new inspiration to clean up my life. ::sigh::
Good for you!
For the third consecutive year the FTC reports identity theft tops the list of top ten consumer complaints.
Source: http://www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs17-it.htm
Source: http://www.identity-theft-protection.com/stats.html
Even the credit reporting agencies say to shred documents before disposing in the trash.
Put into garbage can. Add contents of a bottle of chlorine bleach.
Well, I’m finally at the folk’s home, and I’m shreddin’ like the wind. This is fun. (Or at least it was until I managed to get a nice big fat jam going. The shredder is a 5 page capacity one, but I got a little over ambitious.)
OK, this is bad. I think I broke it. I followed the instructions printed on it (put it in reverse) and then I conitinued to do a FORWARD-REVERSE-FORWARD-REVERSE thing.
After a minute or 2 it stopped working. I hit reset, tried, then waited, tried, and I’m getting nothing. Did I break it?
It might be a combination of paper jam and overheating. You’ll need to carefully pull the bits of paper out by hand, and make sure that you have room for newly-shredded material in the bin underneath. Once you have the paper jam cleared, let it rest for 15-20 minutes before you try again (says the Voice of Experience ).
Cut them into strips with scissors or tear them into little pieces. Then just throw them out. I dump our coffee grounds, spoiled leftovers or used cat litter on top. Then the trash goes directly into the apartment complex’s compactor. If someone wants our pathetic financial info. badly enough to dig through that…Well, I admire their determination. 
As we have been bumped, I’ll respond to an old comment:
So the statistics say that something like one in 50 - 70 people suffers from identity theft per year and the average cost is “over $1,000”. That means if you are spending more than about $20 per year on your security measures (and I would include a value of your personal time in that), then you are spending more than is financially justified. That is why I haven’t bought a shredder and don’t shred my documents.
I bought a shredder to shred my stuff, but mainly because I like to play with the shredder. Before I bought it, I just ripped it up and put it in the bag with the used cat litter. But shredding it is more fun.
I shred, then bleach, with a 5% solution or better, then pulp.
After we got married we changed checking accounts, this left us with a large supply of surplus checks, and no convenient way of disposing of them. We also raised gerbils, one of the few pets we could have in our apartment. So on the way out to work one morning I dropped the entire stack of checks into one of the cages, when I got home that evening the largest piece remaining was about 1/16 by ¼ inch. And the little rats were having a ball! The ink and other chemicals in the paper may not be the best thing for them but they never showed any signs of ill effect.
I suggest simply eating them. They don’t taste that bad, and most people need more fiber in their diet anyways.
Uh, that’s just the monetary costs. If someone steals your identity, it can literally take YEARS to get all the damage undone; you’re pretty much on your own when it comes to proving that the person who’s been withdrawing money from your bank accounts, ruining your credit history, and accessing your personal documents (such as your medical records) is not in fact you! Law enforcement is only just beginning to take identity theft seriously. Don’t be penny wise and dollar foolish - spend the $40 for a decent shredder and use it. Or you may wake up one day to discover that you owe $50,000 dollars in unpaid credit card purchases billed to cards you never signed up for. If that happens, have fun convincing the credit card companies you didn’t open those accounts!
I think the problem is that shredders are so utilitarian and boring. Can’t anybody invent a LION’S MAW shredder, or a BLACK JAWS OF HELL shredder? And why just a “cross” shredder? Why not a “psychotic, anger-management flunkee” shredder, who mauls your statements before devouring them completely and with lots of delicious sound effects? Perhaps a belch to show when he’s done?
We need more stuff, folks.
- PW
I pay little attention to my credit history - I have no debt and do not intend to take on any.
** From what they can find out from a bank statement? Hardly. I protect my SSN fervently. I do not enter it on any forms except tax-related and refuse to deal with businesses, merchants or even doctors that ask for it. And what’s the big deal anyway? I’ll put them on the Internet for all to see - in my 7 years in the US I’ve been treated for conjunctivitis and back pain.
I don’t get unsolicited credit cards. I called the opt-out number and it actually works. And they won’t be able to open an account without my SSN, which I do protect. When it comes to destroying a card of my own, I cut it into pieces and put them in separate trash bags. I can handle doing that once every year or so. I’ve never had a problem persuading credit card companies that incorrect charges are not my responsibility. Anyway, all they have is a “claim” that I owe. I will still have the money. It will be incumbent upon them to prove that I do owe them.
shred statements, add to worm farm ( not too many at once though)
What can they get from your bank statement? How about your account number and how much money you have? They only have to walk into your bank, fill out one of those blank withdrawal forms and clean you out.
My shredder was $6 at Office Max, is that cheap enough for you? :rolleyes:
Re: the 16 years worth of bank statements – my husband has you beat, I think. He still has every document going back to his first bank book in the mid-60’s (when the tellers used to hand write your deposits in for you!)
If someone withdraws money from my account with a forged signature, that’s the bank’s problem. Banks send out statements monthly in obviously marked envelopes - it is very easy for a thief to get hold of a statement just by trawling mailboxes. That’s much easier for them than picking through household trash.
Hijack - as the USPS is too lazy to deliver through a mailbox in the door in many places, is there any regulation against having a lockable mailbox with a slot? I’ve never seen such a thing, but it would prevent having checks stolen from envelopes in your own mailbox (I never mail checks that way, btw).
Of course $6 is not a problem. I don’t want to use up the space, lower the aesthetics of my study, or spend the time shredding.
That may be so, but it’s still a good idea to keep an eye on it now and then. It’s not uncommon for landlords to check credit reports before issuing a lease, and of course mortgage companies always do.
**Hijack - as the USPS is too lazy to deliver through a mailbox in the door in many places, is there any regulation against having a lockable mailbox with a slot? I’ve never seen such a thing, but it would prevent having checks stolen from envelopes in your own mailbox (I never mail checks that way, btw).
**
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Not only are lockable mailboxes legal, they’re becoming increasingly common (for exactly the reason you suggest). You can usually find them at Home Depot or Lowes.