Secure Legal Document Storage – 4 Things You Should Know
When you run a business like a law firm, medical practice, or insurance agency, the last thing you want to worry about is document and data safety and security.
You have a lot on your plate and getting caught out of compliance with storage and safety laws, at risk for theft of your sensitive documents or not having the proper documentation when audited can be stressful, overwhelming, and costly if you are fined.
As secure document storage experts, we know that not everyone is aware of all the information needed for secure legal document storage. That’s okay! No one can be an expert at everything!
You have your business and your expertise and we have ours.
That’s why we compiled a list of the top 5 things you should know about secure legal document storage.
Know Your Compliance Laws
You’ve heard of HIPAA, but do you know everything involved in storing, and the eventual destruction of these documents? If you run a medical practice or anything that stores patients’ medical history you need to stay in compliance with HIPAA at all times.
Sarbanes-Oxley is another compliance law that all publicly traded companies in the United States must follow. This law was enacted to prevent fraud within companies and subject them to audits to confirm that no fraudulent activity is taking place.
If you run a business you need to know about which compliance laws your company should follow and appoint one to two employees to take care of the documentation, storage, and destruction of the files.
Don’t Get All Piled Up
Now that you’ve looked into which compliance laws you are required to follow, you now know that these files need to be saved for a certain length of time. Typically files are meant to be stored between 3-7 years depending on what category they fall under.
These no-longer-needed, but important files can stack up quickly if you don’t have a properly organized system for storage and destruction.
Don’t end up like many businesses with storage cupboards stacked to the top with paperwork that “needs to be kept”. You’ll immediately find that you are keeping paperwork long past the time and you’re just adding to the clutter.
Learn more facts about store securely in another article we wrote that details what personal documents and business documents should be kept in a safe location!
Data Needs to be Protected Too
Now that the world is moving towards fully digital information storage, it’s important to have the right protections on your computers and hard drives to keep out hackers and identity thieves.
You’ve seen the shows of hackers shutting down entire hospitals in exchange for Bitcoins and millions of dollars; well it’s not just fiction…it can happen in real life and it can happen to you if you aren’t careful!
Seek assistance from the compliance laws you fall under for best data protection practices.
Shredding Doesn’t Always Mean Destroyed
If and when it’s time to destroy those documents you’ve held for years, simply throwing it in the shredder at your office won’t do it. Tossing out shredded documents with the regular trash could put you at risk for fraud or identity theft. Yes, people will put the shredded pieces together if they really want the information.
Pro Tip: Read our latest article, How To Know When To Shred Important Documents, for more insight!
Send out your documents and data that need to be destroyed to a reputable and NAID certified document security business (like us!)
Work With Secure Legal Document Storage Experts – Work With Docu-Trust
If you’re a business in California, Nevada, or Arizona and need assistance with secure legal document storage and destruction, look no further than our business, Docu-Trust.
Our state-of-the-art facility and advanced technology fell under the proper statutes of compliance laws that any company needs to follow.
We have specific protocols for signing out data and a fail-safe destruction policy that ensures that nothing gets destroyed accidentally.
Your documents will be more protected at our facility than in a storage closet in your office and at an affordable price you can’t turn down.
If you’re ready to store your documents securely and safely, contact us today!
