Shredding old and outdated documents is an important step in protecting against identity theft, and the Oakland County Sheriff's Departments wants to make it easier for residents to get rid of their old paperwork.
Sheriff Michael Bouchard has teamed up with Absolute Shreds, a mobile shredding service, to provide free document shredding to people who live in Oakland County.
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People can bring their documents to the parking lot of the Oakland County Sheriff's Office this Monday Aug. 27, but only between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m.
Residents should bring confidential and personal they need shredded, but they must limit the amount they bring to three or four boxes of paper only. The Sheriff's Department said this free service is for personal use, not for businesses. The documents will be shredded on site.
The Oakland County Sheriff's Office is located at 1200 N. Telegraph Rd., Bldg. 38E in Pontiac, MI 48341.
The Better Business Bureau recommends the following habits to protect from identity theft:
- Shred statements and applications you receive in the mail that you don't want to keep. This includes credit card applications, financial statements, health forms, utility bill statements.
- Cut up expired credit and debit cards.
- Protect your numbers. This includes social security number, account numbers and passwords. Don't carry these numbers on your person and only give out your social security number when absolutely necessary.
- Secure personal documents at home.
- Monitor bank and credit card activity for unauthorized purchases
For more advice on identity theft protection, click here.
he BBB also provides information on how long people should hold onto documents.
Click here for the schedule the BBB lists on its website.