CINCINNATI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cintas and Ponemon Institute are pleased to present the results of a study on the Security of Document Shredding Services. The purpose of the study was to determine current practices to secure sensitive documents during the shredding and destruction process. In this study, 705 individuals responsible for making decisions about the use of document shredding services for their company were surveyed.

The following are the key findings from this research:

• One-third of respondents do not have a policy for the secure destruction of confidential documents.
• Among those respondents who say their organization has a policy, more than half (51 percent) say it does not cover the secure destruction of hard drives.
• While more than half (55 percent) train their employees on the secure disposal of confidential documents, only 38 percent say they are confident that the training helps ensure the secure disposal of confidential documents.
• The primary reason for using an outside shredding service to destroy and shred confidential information is because respondents believe it is more effective than relying on employees to properly shred and/or destroy confidential information.
• The most important characteristics of vendors engaged to shred confidential documents are: convenience, reputation and responsiveness to urgent needs or requests.

“Based on Ponemon Institute research, organizations that do not take precautions to dispose of confidential documents securely face the likelihood of a data breach,” said Dr. Larry Ponemon, chairman and founder of Ponemon Institute. “Our recommendation is that organizations establish clear guidelines and policies for the destruction of sensitive documents and consider using a professional service such as Cintas to make sure thieves cannot steal confidential business and personal information.”

Participants in this research were also asked about the factors that are important when selecting a document shredding service. According to the findings, Cintas scored very well on the following factors:

• They would recommend their vendor, (28 percent higher than the competition).
• Vendor offers offered smooth, worry-free service, (21 percent higher than the competition).
• Vendor provides a clear understanding of the security procedures used, (23 percent higher than the competition).
• The service offers good value, (21 percent higher than the competition).

“It is the Cintas culture to always exceed our customers’ expectations,” said Karen Carnahan, President and COO, Cintas Document Management. “We believe that top of the line security, proper policies and procedures, innovative technology and more than anything our people absolutely make the difference.”

Ponemon Institute conducted this U.S. survey sponsored by Cintas during the months of March and April 2013. The sample of qualified 705 respondents are employed by medium to larger-sized U.S. organizations in more than 16 industry sectors. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please visit www.cintas.com/DMReport.

About Cintas Corporation:

Headquartered in Cincinnati, Cintas Corporation provides highly specialized services to businesses of all types primarily throughout North America. Cintas designs, manufactures and implements corporate identity uniform programs, and provides entrance mats, restroom cleaning and supplies, tile and carpet cleaning, promotional products, first aid, safety, fire protection products and services and document management services for more than 1 million businesses. Cintas is a publicly held company traded over the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol CTAS and is a component of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.

About Ponemon Institute:

Ponemon Institute is dedicated to independent research and education that advances responsible information and privacy management practices within business and government. Our mission is to conduct high quality, empirical studies on critical issues affecting the management and security of sensitive information about people and organizations.