5 Tips To Keeping Important Documents Safe

Everyone has important documents which need to be kept safe from damage or theft at all times. Some people will need to store their passports in a secure place, whilst others will need to keep important information about their bank accounts under lock and key.

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Documents are liable to be lost or stolen if they are left lying around the house. People should take responsibility for their important documents to ensure that nothing is left to chance.

There are several ways to keep important documents completely safe. Read this helpful guide for five key tips.

Buy A Cabinet Or Safe

Locking important documents in a safe or inside storage cabinets in Perth will help to prevent loss or damage. These cabinets are designed to be heavy enough so that they can’t just get picked up and carried out of the house – the cabinets can also be fixed to the floor in order to provide maximum security for the documents.

The cabinets come with secure locking features, meaning that they can only be opened with the right key or the correct password combination. Safes and cabinets are also designed to be fireproof, so the documents will remain secure even in the event of the house going up in flames. Visit http://www.sepmar.net for more information about storage cabinets.

Make Hard Copies Of The Documents

Important documents should be photocopied in order to provide a backup of the original document. This means that if the original document is lost or damaged, there will be a pristine copy ready to take its place. Make sure that the copies are printed clearly and have any additional notes which are needed.

Hard copies should be kept in a separate place to the original documents. This means that it could be worthwhile buying two different sets of cabinets.

Scan Documents And Create Electronic Copies

Important documents don’t just have to be photocopied the old fashioned way in order to create backup copies. Scan important documents into the computer to create files which can be safely stored electronically. Research cloud-hosting websites in order to find a suitable storage site – this means that the files will still be accessible even if the computer stops working or if it is stolen. Storing files on the computer’s hard-drive can be risky if the computer is infected with viruses or malware. Scan the computer daily with an anti-malware programme to ensure that the documents are not at risk from hackers.

Shred Documents Which Are No Longer Useful

Documents such as bank statements can be requested electronically. This means that paper statements can be shredded and then thrown away. Shredding the paper prevents people from reading this information easily. Get into the habit of shredding these types of documents at least once a month.

Use Ring Binders

Documents may get lost if they are not grouped together properly. Ring binders and plastic wallets allow documents to be kept together. The documents will be easily accessible if they are kept in these folders.

Use this guide to keep important documents safe.