subject: Protect Against Identity Theft With Cross Cut Paper Shredders [print this page] In a different era we were all used to just go ahead and through away our documents in t he trash. Nobody would have spend a second though thinking about somebody going through your garbage prowling for details about you and your life. Unfortunately the world has changed and knowing how cross cut paper shredders protect against identity theft may well be crucial for you and your family. Identity thefts are looking for your documents so they can assume your life, don't make it easy for them.
A simple way to protect yourself are paper shredders. These little machines come in many different types but the most commonly used by consumers are strip cut shredders and cross cut shredders. The strip cutters are usually cheaper than cross cut shredders but they only cut the document in long strips whereas the cross cut shredder cuts the document in many tiny pieces.
While it sure is a nuisance trying to recover documents that have been cut in little strips, all an identity thief needs to do is find your social security number or account number. With a little determination it will probably only take a few minutes to find these numbers in document that have only been cut to strips.
A great example of how easy it is to recover strip cut documents happened in 1979 when the American embassy was taken over by Iranian fanatics and the embassy employees only had strip cutters available to destroy the documents. The Iranians had a field day when they realized that they were able to retrieve almost all secret documents the Americans had left behind. With a cross cut paper shredder that wouldn't have been so easy.
Cross cut paper shredders cut the documents as the name suggests in two directions, one set of knifes cut the paper into strips, while a second set of knifes cut the strips into little snipplets. A one page document can become thousands of pieces the size that each snipplet only covers individual letters.
While it may be possible to recover the original document for one of the spy agencies it is certainly out of proportion for the average identity fraudster. The typical identity thief goes after the easy prey. People that don't shred their documents or just use strip cutters.
Don't get us wrong using strip cutters is better than not shredding at all, but if you really care about your identity you should spend the few extra dollars to buy a shredder that really protects you.
Just think about how much it would cost you to recover the losses and rebuild your life and credit score after your identity has been ruined by fraudsters. Doesn't that justify to do the right thing and buy a machine that can really protect you?
Identity theft is a real threat, millions of people fall victim every year and few recover from the damage that is done in a short time. Most will suffer the consequences for years after their identity got stolen. Don't be one of the victims and learn how cross cut paper shredders protect against identity theft
