The problem of data security is not only a problem for banks or companies, but also for each of us. Although we often do not realise it, in every household there are at least several dozen documents which contain sensitive data and should be well protected.
We often hear about personal data leaking or someone taking out a loan in someone else's name, but we do not realise how many documents we have at home contain this data and, if it were to fall into the wrong hands, we could be in a lot of trouble. Besides, every year we accumulate a small pile of important documents, which for various reasons we should keep for some time. Such important documents include:
1. birth certificates, marriage certificates, divorce certificates, adoption documents,
2. passport,
3. loan agreements, credit agreements,
4. insurance policies,
5. employment contracts, commission agreements,
6. warranty cards and purchase receipts,
7. housing, third-party liability and other insurance policies,
8. tax documents.
You can find an article about a GDPR compliant safe in our blog.
It is a good idea to have them close at hand, but at the same time they should not be accessible to everyone in the house, and certainly not to colleagues, neighbours or the employee we have ordered to repair the damage.
Is it worth storing important documents in a safe?
It is a good idea to store all important documents in a safe, both against theft and damage. A document safe is best for this. Why? Because no other method can protect documents against both nature (fire, flood) and third parties (theft, copying). Such a home safe is an expense of several hundred to several thousand PLN (depending on the type of lock, security class and other additional parameters), but our peace of mind and security are priceless.
Read also: Safe in the office – which one to choose?
An armoured filing cabinet – why do you need one in your company?
Secure original documents only in a safe
A safe is not only a protection of documents in case of theft, but thanks to the fact that it is non-flammable and durable, it also protects documents from mechanical damage. Of course, we can keep scans of our documents in the cloud or on a secure computer drive, but the most important thing is the originals – and these can be lost irretrievably in the event of a fire or flooding. Storing original documents in a safe also prevents them from accidentally falling into the wrong hands (e.g. in the hands of our youngest children, who will gladly make a colouring book out of an important policy).
For security and safety – a copy of documents
Although the original documents will be safe in the safe, it is always a good idea to make copies of the most important documents as well. Although most of them will not serve as a substitute for the original (unless they are notarized), having e.g. the policy numbers will make it easier to reconstruct them. It is better not to keep copies of documents in a safe together with the originals. You can, for example, put them in a bank safe deposit box or a special cyber safe – in a well-protected cloud.
