I had never really thought about paper shredding for identity theft prevention until I read an account of rubbish being stolen. A woman had taken her rubbish to a bin room as the bag was too large to fit down the chute in her apartment block. Minutes later she was back with another bag, and saw a man walking off with the first bag of rubbish which she had deposited into the bin.

She didn't approach him, but recognised him as a resident from the same apartment block as her. Apparently, after asking around, this was not the first time it had happened. Same guy, same scenario. The woman wasn't bothered about identity theft as she had no sensitive items in her rubbish, but she was bothered that someone would steal her trash.

Paper shredding is an essential activity to prevent people like this guy stealing your identity. Sure he lucked out with her bag of rubbish, but what about the people who aren't quite so savvy and aware that this kind of thing goes on? Take action before someone does steal your identity via paper documents, because although you are absolutely clear of blame, it can cause a lifetime of repercussions that nobody should have to deal with.

I recall a documentary from years back now about a guy called Benji The Binman. This guy was known as a 'professional muckraker' who stole rubbish from high profile people and then used it to sell stories to newspapers. Sensitive documents were taken from the likes of Mohamed Al Fayed (the owner of Harrods), Sir Elton John, Robbie Williams and Sir Richard Branson, to name but a few.

Benjamin Pell would trawl the streets of London at night in a van, gathering the rubbish of the rich and famous, and then taking it back to his house and sorting through it for any juicy information. At first, Benji The Binman would sell his stories direct to newspapers, but then Max Clifford began acting as his middle-man. This resulted in some of the sensitive information found in the rubbish making front page headline news stories.

Luckily it would seem that Benjamin Pell was just a sufferer of OCD and not a celebrity stalker. He claims to have known the Spice Girls and All Saint's work diaries inside out, due to their record labels disposing of their itineraries fully in tact. He also claims to have been in possession of the Ali G movie script two years before the film was released. If he had any intention of harming a celebrity, he had ample information such as addresses, mobile numbers and work diaries to do so.

Which should make you think about what you are putting into your rubbish. Pell wanted fame, attention and money from breaking news stories about high profile people, what about the people who want to steal your identity for criminal activities?

There are various reasons that your identity may be stolen, but they are mainly financial. Criminals apply for bank loans, credit cards and bank accounts with stolen identities for financial gain. In the case of the first two, money, or credit is given to someone with a stolen identity, and it never has to be paid back by that person, it's free. When repayments aren't met, it is you the victim who will be contacted and asked for payment. That's a scary situation to be in.

In the case of a stolen identity used to open a bank account, this is mainly so money gained by crime can be processed and withdrawn with no trace back to the actual criminal. It is the person whose identity has been stolen who will be associated with the crime. Not a position you want to find yourself in. If someone has created a bank account with your identity, it is also possible that they could gain access to your actual account if it is with the same bank. Cue finding your account empty and having no idea how or why.

Other reasons for identity theft are:

• Fake passports and driving licenses for illegal immigrants
• Claiming state benefits
• Registering a vehicle
• Applying for a mobile phone contract
• Evading police
• Obtaining prescription drugs
  

Paper shredding should be used on all documentation that contains your name and address, landline number, mobile number, card numbers, account numbers, sort codes, passwords, pin numbers and your mother's maiden name.

A basic guide to paper shredding:

• Bank / Credit card statements
• Receipts for purchases and from cash machines
• Utility bills
• Any partly filled in application forms
• Tax correspondence
• Old passports / driving licenses
• Old chequebooks / cheques
• All name and address information on junk mail

Top Tip: If you don't have a crosscut paper shredder, always shred the document top to bottom or vice versa, never shred from the side of the document as information can still be seen in the strips.

Basically, anything that you are going to throw away that has any details about you and your life should be shredded. It sounds extreme, but with shredders for the home being so easy to use, it's a minor effort compared to what you will have to deal with if you are a victim of stolen identity. Prevention is always better than a cure, and in some cases there is no cure, you can have bad credit for life.

In this day and age where so many of us recycle our waste, it's especially important to sort through the documents you are recycling. There's no need for a criminal to sift through old bits of food and toiletries in a bag to get sensitive information now. It's right there for the taking in a pile of paper.

Shred and keep your identity your own!