March 27, 2023
The Importance of Specialty Product Destruction
Confidential information comes in many forms. Sensitive or proprietary materials are not limited to digital data and paper documents. Products can contain confidential or proprietary information and should be considered for secure disposal to help prevent theft or fraud. These items include unsold or defective designer handbags or clothing, unwanted first responder uniforms, empty medication containers, expired credit cards, old employee badges, and unneeded casino chips or playing cards.
If products are disposed of in an unsecured manner, they could potentially put a business or brand at risk if obtained by criminals, a competitor, or the public. Below are three reasons to consider having your discarded products destroyed rather than placing them in an unsecure dumpster:
Brand Protection
By destroying unused products, a business can help prevent them from being sold or used in unauthorized channels.
Limited Liability
Product destruction can help prevent recalled or defective products from re-entering the marketplace, which could potentially put the original company in unintended monetary or legal trouble.
Protected Proprietary Information
Secure destruction can also help impede competitor access to prototypes and other confidential product information.
How Specialty Products are Destroyed
Shred-it®, a Stericycle solution, offers two options for destroying your specialty products, depending on the items and your location: shredding and incineration. Shred-it® can support the destruction of most specialty products via third-party incineration. Shredding or incineration by Stericycle is available in select markets. Contact Shred-it® for availability.
How Shred-it® Can Help
Although incineration is not a process certified by the National Association of Information Destruction (NAID), Shred-it® uses similar security protocols for specialty destruction as we use in our document and hard drive destruction services. In most cases: products are picked up by a trained Shred-it® representative, transported on GPS-equipped fleets, stored on an interim basis in a monitored Shred-it® facility, and then Shred-it® personnel accompany the material to the third-party incineration facility.
Learn how Shred-it® can help your organization protect your proprietary materials. Contact us today to see what specialty product destruction services are available in your area.
Frequently Asked Questions
What types of products should be considered for secure destruction?
Products that are defective or have proprietary information and could be stolen by competitors or resold in the marketplace.
What is the difference between shredding and incineration?
Shredding is best used for paper products or softer materials (such as fabric). It is a process that uses cross-cutting technology to tear the material apart into small pieces so that it cannot be reconstructed.
Incineration, involves subjecting materials to high heat combustion.
What is Stericycle, and what destruction services does the company offer?
Stericycle is a leading provider of medical waste management and secure information destruction services. Shred-it®, a Stericycle solution, offers specialty product management and destruction, one-time shredding, regularly scheduled shredding, hard drive destruction, drop-off shredding, community shredding events, and residential shredding.
What are some examples of items that Stericycle has managed for secure destruction?
Some examples of items that Stericycle has managed for secure destruction include:
- Unsold or defective designer handbags or clothing
- Unwanted first responder uniforms
- Unneeded casino chips
- Recalled beef jerky
- Recalled diapers
