‘Shred Fest 2016’ Helps New Jersey Consumers Avoid Risk of Identity Theft

As part of its ongoing efforts to help consumers avoid falling victim to identity theft, AARP New Jersey is sponsoring “ Shred Fest 2016” – a pair of local NJ events to provide free shredding of personal financial documents and other sensitive records.

The Shred Fest events will be held on Friday, April 22 ^nd in Harrison and Saturday, April 23 ^rd in Trenton.

These two events kick off dozens of Shred Fest 2016 events scheduled for communities nationwide, during Money Smart Week^® April 23-30, with support from the AARP Fraud Watch Network and the AARP Foundation.

“Identity thieves routinely search through dumpsters and trash cans, looking to find confidential information.  Our Shred Fest 2016 event will allow consumers to discard this paperwork in a safe and secure manner,” said Jeff Abramo, Communications Director, AARP New Jersey.”

To avoid having your sensitive information compromised, security experts recommend shredding of the following types of materials:

• Old documents:  Papers that carry your Social Security number, birth date, signature, account numbers, passwords or PIN numbers.
• Banking:  Canceled or unused checks.  Shred deposit slips and ATM and credit card receipts, once you receive your monthly statements.
• Credit Cards: Preapproved credit card applications and incentive/gift checks from credit card companies.
• Medical: unneeded medical bills.
• Investments: Investment account statements.
• Obsolete ID cards: Expired driver’s licenses, medical insurance cards and passports.

Shred Fest 2016 events are being held in at least 37 states next week.  Residents of other communities who wish to take advantage of a Shred Fest event may refer to online schedule.

 

New Jersey location information is provided below:

LOCATION #1:

Date: Friday, April 22nd

Time: 8am - 2pm

Location: Red Bull Arena, 600 Cape May Street, Harrison, NJ, 07029

 

LOCATION #2:

Date: Saturday, April 23rd

Time: 9am - 1:30pm

Location: 1 Centre St., Trenton, NJ, 08611

 

And for those consumers who use a home shredder, experts also recommend the use of a micro-cut model.  Tests have shown that the scraps of paper from a straight or cross-cut shredder can be reassembled by identity thieves.  With a micro-cut shredder, the paper is rendered into impossible-to-reassemble debris.

More information on how to keep yourself safe from identity theft fraud, and alerts regarding other types of scams, is available from the Fraud Watch Network at www.aarp.org/FraudWatchNetwork.