If you don’t need it, dispose of it…responsibly.  The Better Business Bureau of Southern Piedmont and the Mecklenburg County Consumer Fraud Task Force invite the community to participate in the first-ever, coast-to-coast, “Secure Your ID” Day – Saturday, May 3, 2008.  From 9 a.m. – 12 noon, individuals and small businesses can prevent identity theft by bringing bags and boxes of documents to be shredded at no charge to The Arboretum Shopping Center in Charlotte (lower end of parking lot on Highway 51 side). 

National partner, Equifax, and local partners, Automated Shredding and Shred-It, are teaming up to offer free, secure, on-site shredding services during this community service event. Automated Shredding and Shred-It are members of the National Association of Information Destruction (NAID) and BBB Accredited Businesses.

“Shredding sensitive documents, like bank statements, bills and receipts, is an important first step in protecting yourself against identity theft,” said Tom Bartholomy, President & CEO of The Better Business Bureau of Southern Piedmont.  “BBB experts will also be on-hand to distribute important advice about simple ways everyone can prevent ID theft.”

Last year alone, 8.1 million Americans became victims of ID theft, resulting in a loss of $45 billion, according to a 2008 report from Javelin Strategy and Research. “This is largely a crime of access,” added Bartholomy.  “Our goal with the national, coast-to-coast, ‘Secure Your ID’ Day is to make personal information less accessible to identity thieves and to empower people to be their own first line of defense against identity theft.”

Members of The Mecklenburg County Consumer Fraud Task Force will also be on hand to answer specific questions and give information on their respective agencies, including Bank of America, Better Business Bureau of Southern Piedmont, Better Business Bureau Consumer Foundation, Centralina Area Agency on Aging, Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department - Fraud Division, Federal Bureau of Investigation, First Charter Bank, North Carolina Attorney General's Office, North Carolina Department of the Secretary of State, North Carolina Department of Insurance, North Carolina SMP Program, United States Postal Inspection Service, United States Secret Service and Wachovia Bank.

For more information about The Better Business Bureau, please visit www.bbb.org or call 1-877-317-7236 toll-free in NC and SC.

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