Richards & Richards Blog

October 2010

 





Richards & Richards
on the Cover of Secure Destruction Business Magazine this Month! 


Our President & CEO, Steve Richards spoke with them about “Sweating the Small Things”.  Our philosophy for customer service, complete records management bundle offerings and the constant striving for improvement are highlighted. 

Click here to read more about Richards & Richards >>>>>




Spooky October!

Are records disappearing at your office?  We could blame ghosts, ghouls or goblins – it is that time!  However, we can combat those nasty gremlins with some good records management practices.

How much time do you lose to the elusive file each day? Are you spending top dollar for a storage area for just your inactive files? Managed storage is usually cheaper that the mini-storage alternatives and makes your files easy to retrieve!


Combat the missing and hard to find file by:

Creating a good inventory
Storing in a good quality box
and
Storing in a managed facility! 

What about your computers?  Are you creating good back-ups and storing them in a safe location?  The goblins like your electronic files too! 

Letting an employee take your back-up tapes home exposes you to all sorts of data loss risks including theft or damage from extreme temperatures.  The cost of a data breach or the loss of your computer data is something most small businesses do not survive. 

Be sure your tapes are being handled correctly and securely – like with a DataVault Service

Let us help you create a records management system that works.  No more looking through boxes for the misplaced file or trying to retrieve missing data from damaged backup tapes!  Contact us today to schedule a consultation!




Free Shred Day!

Richards & Richards in cooperation with the Nashville Chamber of Commerce, the Nashville Better Business Bureau and Zander Insurance invites everyone, individuals and small businesses alike to destroy their confidential documents securely for one day only – at no cost! 

Location:   1741 Elm Hill Pike, Nashville
Date:        Saturday, October 23, 2010
Hours:       10am – 2pm

The Metropolitan Police Fraud Unit will be on hand along with Zander Insurance providing information on how to protect yourselves from identity theft.

For directions click here >>>





Is Your Company Destined to Make Headlines for Its Handling of Sensitive Records and Information?

Making headlines can be a good thing – unless it's because an organization has mishandled its sensitive records and information. Just ask Affiliated Computer Services, Radio Shack, TJX, the most recent examples of this apparent phenomenon.

On March 28, TJX revealed that hackers accessed credit card and debit card information for almost 46 million customers in 2005 and 2006, plus driver's license numbers and other personal information for an additional 451,000 customers who returned merchandise. It's being called the biggest financial breach ever.

Hackers accessed credit card and debit card information for almost 46 million customers in 2005 and 2006, plus driver's license numbers and other personal information for an additional 451,000 customers who returned merchandise. It's being called the biggest financial breach ever.

Click here for more information >>>>>>



September 2010

 







In The Community

We have been blessed to be able to help our community with saving some records vital to our neighbors.  Our experience and resources in organizing and restoring documents has brought us to the forefront of working with state and local governments in the wake of recent flooding.

To see what Richards & Richards is doing with the State of TN click here > > >

To see how Richards & Richards is working with Johnson City click here > > >

Richards & Richards focuses on all aspects of records and information management.  If you are concerned about how to store your documents to prevent problems or creating a disaster recovery plan for the worst case scenarios please contact us here >>>




Are You Following a
Retention Schedule?

A June 2010 survey from Symantec shows an interesting split between attitude and actions when it comes to data retention and disposition. In fact, it shows that most organizations don’t follow their own advice.

Most organizations (87%) believe they should have a proper information retention strategy, but fewer than half (46%) actually have a formal information retention plan in place.

As a result, these businesses spend far more time and money on the negative consequences of poor information management and discovery practices than they would by working to change them.  To read more on this study click here >>>>

If not, you could be opening your company to various fines from the Federal Trade Commission and other regulatory enforcement agencies. 

At Richards & Richards we have staff members who are certified by the National Association of Information Destruction (NAID), to provide your company with a written policy as well as regular destruction service.  To learn more about these services click here >>>>>




Free Shred Day!

Richards & Richards in cooperation with the Nashville Chamber of Commerce, the Nashville Better Business Bureau and Zander Insurance invites everyone, individuals and small businesses alike to destroy their confidential documents securely for one day only – at no cost! 

Location:   1741 Elm Hill Pike, Nashville
Date:        Saturday, October 23, 2010
Hours:       10am – 2pm

The Metropolitan Police Fraud Unit will be on hand along with Zander Insurance providing information on how to protect yourselves from identity theft.

For directions click here >>>





First HIPAA Violation Settlement Reached

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal today announced a settlement — the first of its kind in the nation — with Health Net and its affiliates for failing to secure private patient medical records and financial information on nearly a half million Connecticut enrollees and promptly notifying consumers endangered by the breach.

 

The settlement provides powerful protections for consumers and a $250,000 payment to the state — and marks the first action by a state attorney general for violations of the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) since the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH) authorized state attorneys general to enforce HIPAA.

Click here for more >>>>



August 2010

newsletter

Why Your Staff Shouldn’t Take Your Back-up Tapes Home at Night

If you are having your office manager take home your back-up tapes at night, beware there are a number of problems that can arise from this practice.

Tapes can easily be stolen in unsecured areas, exposing your company to notification expenses, lost data and bad publicity.

Click the link below for an example of this very problem.  A tape stolen from the car of an employee exposed the taxpayer records of 200,000 Ohio state residents and employees.

Stolen Taxpayer Records – Columbus, OH

A good example of risky business controls is where an IT employee takes home backup tapes as part of an organized disaster recovery plan.  An example of one companies’ discovery of how risky it can is available here>>

Storing backup tapes off-site is a crucial step in a disaster recovery plan.  Data center experts recommend that IT leaders – even those at smaller organizations – adopt the "best practices" model and store backup tapes in the proper environment such as at the Richards & Richards’ DataVault.  This is the best way to avoid the problems noted above.  For more information or a quote on service click here.

R. Stephen Richards
President & CEO

Upcoming Free Seminars

Aug. 19th – RRWeb Luncheon and Training

Aug. 26th – E-Vaulting Demonstration and Lunch

Sept. 16th – RRWeb Luncheon and Training

Click here to sign up for any of these free events!

 

 

Major Changes to HIPAA Security and Privacy Rules

On February 17th, President Obama signed into law a $787 billion economic stimulus package. The stimulus package includes the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, or “HITECH Act.” 

The HITECH Act is the largest and most consequential expansion and change to the federal privacy and security rules since the beginning of the HIPAA privacy and security programs. A major portion of the HITECH Act creates new federal privacy and security provisions that will have major operational and legal consequences for all health care providers, health plans, their “business associates,” and some vendors and service providers that were not previously considered “business associates.” This article summarizes the privacy and security provisions of the HITECH Act, and focuses on their impact on health care providers, health plans, and their business associates. More>>

Importance of Encrypting your Data

A tape for a medical practice was taken from an employee’s vehicle while it sat in the parking lot of a Denny’s restaurant in Greensboro, NC.  The tape contained the names, addresses and Social Security numbers of patients.  Click here for the full story

Under the new HIPAA laws – if this tape had been encrypted the practice would not have had to notify the over 4,000 patient that were affected.  This would have limited their expense and negative publicity.

Click here to receive a white paper from our partner on data encryption and management’s key role in this process.

July 2010

 







Disaster Strike?

Many in our area had a hard lesson in creating and maintaining computer back-up data in the recent flooding. 

Be sure you evaluate these important items in your computer disaster recovery plan:

 - Are you backing up your data?
93% of companies that lost their data center for 10 days or more due to a disaster filed for bankruptcy within one year of the disaster. 50% of businesses that found themselves without data management for this same time period filed for bankruptcy immediately. (Source: National Archives & Records Administration in Washington)

- Where is your back up stored?

Are you sending home with an employee – are they keeping it cool, not dropping it, making sure it stays clean?  Dust, sudden impacts, and heat are just a few of the things that can render a tape unreadable – Curtis Breville, founder and president of geniusTek

- When did you last test your backup?
Have you done a full restore recently?  Until you test your backups, you cannot be sure they are backing up in a manner you can retrieve.  This should be done on a partial basis weekly with a full restore check done at least semi-annually.

- How do you retrieve your information?

If you have lost everything but the tapes, how do you restore?   Do you have a location you can go to and work with your files until your office is accessible again?  Having the data with no way to access it – won't help you continue operating your business.

- Is your information protected if lost or stolen?
The unthinkable happens – a tape is taken by someone or misplaced.  Your client's information is now out of your control.  Is your tape encrypted? Having your data encrypted prevents a tremendous liability and also waives many of the privacy law requirements for public notification saving you the bad publicity.

Richards & Richards has options to help you with creating a safe and fully functional data back-up solution.  You can check out our DataVault here or contact us for information on encrypting hardware or internet vaulting options.

Sincerely,

R. Stephen Richards




Health and Human Resources Releases Notice on HIPAA Rulemaking

On July 8, 2010, the US Dept. of Health and Human Services (HHS) released proposed modifications to the HIPAA Privacy, Security and Enforcement Rule. 

Click here to access the release, titled Modifications to the HIPAA Privacy, Security, and Enforcement Rules under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act.






What is
AAA NAID 
Certification?

Many of you may know that we are AAA NAID Certified for plant-based shredding for paper, magnetic media and for computer hard drives, but do you know what it means to you and your company? 

NAID is the National Association of Information Destruction, the only industry association that shredding companies can voluntarily become members of and apply for certification.

Certification by NAID is a rigorous process that includes surprise audits and the highest security standards in the document destruction industry.  Companies that apply for certification have to meet a number of strict standards.  Click here to download a list of requirements for certification.

If you choose a AAA NAID certified vendor – you can be assured that they will maintain a high level of security in their procedures.  To see more on our process – please click here>>



June 2010

 







New Imaging Solutions!
 
We are excited to announce that we have expanded and enhanced our imaging division! 

We have multiple options to serve your electronic document needs:

Full Service – Our representatives will pick-up, image, index and store your images in our highly secure electronic data center.  You will be able to access them via the web, email or we can burn them to CD/DVD for your use.

On-line storage
– You can scan and index your documents and we provide you a high security data storage for your records.  Through our data center you would have immediate access to scanned documents to be saved to file, faxed, emailed or printed.

Scan on Demand – If you have hard copy storage with Richards & Richards currently, we can scan documents on demand as you need them.  They can be provided to you through email, web or burnt to CD/DVD.

Please contact us here if you are interested in learning more.

Sincerely,

R. Stephen Richards




To Better Serve You….

As you may have noticed, when you place an order with customer service you receive an email confirmation very quickly.   

We confirm every order – so if you do not receive something has prevented us from receiving and processing. 

If you do not receive a confirmation in a timely manner, please call us at 615-242-9600.
  We want to provide you the best service possible and

The exception to this is RRWeb orders – please be sure you checkout.  Items in your cart are not ordered until you do. 




Red Flags Rule Enforcement Deadline Postponed
  
Today was supposed to mark the long awaited enforcement deadline of the Red Flags Rule.  However, last Friday, for the fifth time in two years, it was postponed again.  The new enforcement deadline is January 1, 2011. 

In the FTC announcement, which came in the closing hours of the last business day before the deadline, the regulator blamed Congressional pressure for the delay.  Click here for more info>>




HHS Warns of Tougher HIPAA Enforcement

At the Safeguarding Health Information conference in Washington, D.C. last month, Susan McAndrew, deputy director for privacy at the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights, said that the healthcare industry can soon expect a greater emphasis on enforcing the HIPAA security rule than in years past.

To reinforce her point, she stated that the Office for Civil Rights has added investigators in 10 regional offices specifically for the purpose of boosting enforcement.  Click here to continue>>





Managed Storage
vs.
Self Storage

Do you have records sitting in a self storage unit?  Think it is too expensive to move them to a managed storage facility?  The truth is – you are probably spending more in self storage.

Take a look at how much of that self managed room actually has records in it. How much is thin air? How many boxes of files can you sensibly store in that room that you pay for? Don't look at the cost per square foot -  work it back to a cost per box.

With a professional off-site records management solution you simply pay for what you store – nothing more, nothing less. Legitimately, you could realize storage savings of up to 50% or greater when compared to a self managed solution.

In a self store – the actions for placing and retrieving items when files are needed will be carried out by your staff. It's not only the time and labor that staff spend visiting the self store facility you also need to consider the opportunity cost lost of a member of staff not undertaking their core duties.

Moving to a professional off-site records management service not only guarantees the price you pay for each type of access, but by employing a professional service your business and your business records will benefit massively by being placed within an environment where technology is employed at every opportunity. With automated audit trails, wireless barcode tracking equipment and massive inventory possibilities your records are in very good hands.

We at Richards & Richards would be happy to help you calculate the savings to your company by making the transition from self store.  Please contact us here if we can provide you with some information>>>



April 2010

Are You Following Your Retention Policy?

Spring is here and it is time for Spring cleaning!  If you don't have a retention policy or haven't been following the schedule, now is the time to get caught up.

Your company can face many challenges by not doing this:

  • Destroying documents early can lead to legal fines and other harsher consequences.
  • Not destroying documents when they are scheduled to be opens them up to be subpoenaed or audited.
  • Not having a retention policy may place you in violation of the Red Flag FACTA laws.

Richards & Richards can help in many ways with getting you back on track this Spring. 

Enjoy this beautiful Spring weather with your family and friends!

R. Stephen Richards
President & CEO

April 17th           Free Shred Day

April 21st           RRWeb Lunch & Learn

May 19th           RRWeb Lunch & Learn

All seminars are free to our clients and are held from 12pm – 1:30pm with limited attendance.  Spaces will be held on a first come/first serve basis.  RSVP by clicking the link on the date you would like above.

Free Shred Day!

Richards & Richards, in cooperation with the Nashville Better Business Bureau, invites everyone, individuals and small businesses alike to destroy their confidential documents securely for one day only – at no cost!*



Location: 1741 Elm Hill Pike, Nashville
Date:      Saturday, April 17, 2010
Hours:     10am – 2pm
What:      Free Paper Shredding!

Richards & Richards and the Nashville Better Business Bureau want to help the community to protect themselves from identity theft.  So, pack up as much paper as you want – no limit – in boxes, cars or trucks and bring it to our location.  We’ll shred it all for free!

*This offer excludes boxes under management in our storage division.

Can Your Company Be Trusted? Ponemon Institute Survey Sheds Light

Consumers are starting to pay more attention to how companies protect customer information and privacy. And, according to Ponemon Institute’s fifth annual survey on the issue, Most Trusted Companies for Privacy Study, privacy and information security protections are important in building customer trust and brand loyalty.

Click here for more information

March 2010

 







Come on In! 
We'd Love to
See You!

Some of you have been by to see us, whether it was for a meeting, box review, seminar or just to look around. 

If you haven't been by we'd love to show you around so you can see exactly what happens to your important documents once they are in our care.  Our customer service team also loves the chance to meet the clients they talk to face-to-face.  Click here if you'd like a tour >>>

Better yet – sign up for one of our lunch seminars and get an education, lunch and tour all at the same time.  Who says there is no such thing as a free lunch?  Check out the Upcoming Events section in the bottom right corner to look for topics!

Sincerely,

R. Stephen Richards
President & CEO




HITECH Act Compliance Alert:
Historic Breach of PHI Lawsuit!

If you think the HITECH Act isn't a game changer, think again.

The State Attorney General  of Connecticut filed a historic lawsuit for breach of protected health information for an estimated 446,000 past and present Connecticut enrollees of Health Net of Connecticut.

The case marks the first action by a state attorney general involving HIPAA violations since HITECH went into effect, authorizing State Attorney Generals to enforce HIPAA.

According to the lawsuit, on or about May 14, 2009, Health Net officials learned that a portable computer disk drive disappeared from the company's Shelton office. The disk drive contained PHI and identity information for approximately 446,000 past and present Connecticut enrollees.

Blumenthal alleges that Health Net failed to promptly notify his office or other Connecticut authorities of the missing information.

According to a report filed by Kroll, Inc., a computer forensic consulting firm hired by Health Net, the data was not encrypted or otherwise protected from access and viewing by unauthorized persons or third parties, and was viewable through the use of commonly available software.

Click here to read more >>>>

Richards & Richards has options available to help you encrypt your information and store it securely.  Simply encrypting your data will bring you under the “Safe Harbor” clause in the event of a breach saving your company money and embarassment.   Click here for more information >>>




RED FLAGS RULE ENFORCEMENT DEADLINE POSTPONED

Today was supposed to mark the long awaited enforcement deadline of the Red Flags Rule.  However, last Friday, for the fifth time in two years, it was postponed again.  The new enforcement deadline is January 1, 2011. 

In the FTC announcement, which came in the closing hours of the last business day before the deadline, the regulator blamed Congressional pressure for the delay. 



HHS WARNS OF TOUGHER HIPAA ENFORCEMENT

At the Safeguarding Health Information conference in Washington, D.C. last month, Susan McAndrew, deputy director for privacy at the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights, said that the healthcare industry can soon expect a greater emphasis on enforcing the HIPAA security rule than in years past.

To reinforce her point, she stated that the Office for Civil Rights has added investigators in 10 regional offices specifically for the purpose of boosting enforcement.

Consequently, 2010 is when the industry will really start to see a realization of HITECH’s privacy and security initiatives enacted in 2009. “We’re hoping to move security to the forefront and make it a real partner with privacy in our enforcement,” McAndrew says.


March 17th         RRWeb Lunch & Learn

April 17th           Free Shred Day

April 21st           RRWeb Lunch & Learn

All seminars are free to our clients and are held from 12pm – 1:30pm with limited attendance.  Spaces will be held on a first come/first serve basis.  RSVP by clicking the link on the date you would like above.



February 2010

 







New Horizons!
  
In this new year, Richards & Richards is adding many new features to provide you with the best possible service. 

The first of these is a National Presence!  If you have offices throughout the Southeast or even across the nation, we now have the ability to arrange for service to these offices as well. 

We hope that you wish to extend the quality and value of service that we provide to you here on a local level – to all of your existing and future offices or ongoing as your company continues to grow.  Click here to contact us regarding a quote>>

As we continue to expand our service offerings we will keep you informed.  Happy Valentine's Day to you and to your loved ones!

Sincerely,

R. Stephen Richards
President & CEO




New Privacy Legislation Pending

On December 8, 2009, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Data Accountability and Trust Act (DATA) via voice vote. The measure has been sent to the Senate for consideration.

This legislation:

  • Authorizes the FTC to require a standard method or methods for destroying obsolete, non-electronic data
  • Requires information brokers to submit their security policies to the FTC in conjunction with a security breach notification or on FTC request
  • Requires the FTC to conduct or require an audit of security practices when information brokers are required to provide notification of such a breach.
  • Establish procedures to verify the accuracy of information that identifies individuals
  • Provide to individuals whose personal information it maintains a means to review that information
  • Place notice on the Internet instructing individuals how to request access to such information
  • Correct inaccurate information

For more detail on this legislation click here >>




Free Shred Day!

Richards & Richards, in cooperation with the Nashville Chamber of Commerce, invites everyone, individuals and small businesses alike to destroy their confidential documents securely for one day only – at no cost! 

Location: 1741 Elm Hill Pike, Nashville
Date:      Saturday, April 17, 2010
Hours:     10am – 2pm
What:      Free Paper Shredding!

Richards & Richards and the Nashville Chamber of Commerce want to help the community to protect themselves from identity theft.  So, pack up as much paper as you want – in boxes, cars or trucks and bring it to our location.  We’ll shred it all for free!




Professional Growth Opportunity
One of the most important pieces of any records management plan is a retention schedule.  Developing and maintaining a proper retention schedule protects your business in the event of litigation or an audit. 

For anyone looking to create a plan or if you are in charge of implementing a plan for the first time, the below course is offered by ARMA International – the professional organization of records managers internationally.

Records Retention and
Disposition Online Course

This online course provides a well-rounded introduction to the value and theory of records management and the basic skills of records inventory, retention scheduling, classification, storage, and planning and managing a records management program. The online course offers an overview of records management terminology, concepts, and procedures to successfully manage records in today's business environment.

Click here to learn more!

Richards & Richards also has on staff, a knowledgeable consultant in the field of records management that can assist you with the development and implementation of a retention policy for your organization.  If you would like more information on this service, please click  here …



January 2010

 







 

Happy New Year!

As we begin 2010, it is out with the old and in with the new . . . .documents in our case. 

It is the time of year to review the files in your office and either send them to storage or destroy them, as well as review your records in storage with us and destroy according to your retention schedule.

To help you start the new year right, we are offering a few deals – listed below – for our newsletter readers for the first quarter of 2010!

Do you have a lot of files at your office to destroy?  We will give you 10% off destruction for a large purge until March 31, 2010 – click here or use code: 10SPNEWS

Are you catching up on destruction on managed records in our facility?  We will waive the access fees on files being destroyed per your retention schedule until March 31, 2010 – click here or use code: AFWNEWS

We are available to help with all of the above tasks.  We can provide storage, shredding, project staff and consulting to help you prepare and organize for a fresh start to the new year.

We hope that these discounts help you to maintain good records management practices in these hard times.

Sincerely,

R. Stephen Richards
President & CEO







RRWeb Training
Sessions are Back!

Starting January 20th at 12 noon our training sessions will begin again for 2010!

Having trouble locating your files? 

You have the ability to keep your box and file inventory on our server through your Internet connection.

  • Look up your deposit information automatically through the internet.
  • Index your file and box information directly into our database, so you see what we see.
  • Request pick-up and delivery services.
  • Verify or edit destruction dates for your containers.
  • Request specific, unique reports.
  • Best of all – this program is provided to you at No Cost


Free sessions are held the 3rd Wednesday of each month and lunch is provided.

Space is limited so please RSVP to reserve a place here>>>>




For RRWeb Users!
Do you need to request an individual file? 
Use Order Express from the left hand menu!  Choose Filefolder under Request an Unregistered Item – the order fields will populate so you can give us the file name and barcode number easily!

For Records Storage Clients!
Have you requested a large pick-up of boxes, several days in advance of the pick-up date?  Recount your boxes the day before -  you may be surprised that they may have multiplied.  Let us know so we can adjust our truck space to get them all in one pick-up.



December 2019

newsletter
s
 

Year End Approaching!

It’s that time of year again!  We focus on the completion of another year and preparing to start again.  As you go through this process, I recommend at least a quick review of your procedures for privacy protection.

Self-audit your paper destruction materials – Go to a few alternative areas to dispose of paper and pull out a few sheets.  Are these documents that should have been shredded and disposed of in a confidential manner?  Need help with this click here

Walk through a breach or loss of computer data – You have a computer back-up tape that runs daily.  It is stolen or lost.  Is the data encrypted to protect your company from notification requirements that can be costly both monetarily & to your reputation?  Want more information click here
AND
Invest the time in a comprehensive recovery test of your system – before it is mission critical.  Most business fail when faced with lost data, and tapes can be corrupted by just a few minutes in a hot car.

If you find that you have issues that need to be addressed, please contact us for assistance or information.

Sincerely,

R. Stephen Richards
President & CEO

s

Merry
Christmas!

Our office will be closed
December 24th & 25th and January 1
in observance of the upcoming holidays!

s

Update to Red Flags Rule

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has delayed the compliance deadline of the Red Flags Rule until June 1, 2010.

In Nov. 2007, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a set of regulations, known as the “Red Flags Rule,” requiring that certain entities develop and implement written identity theft prevention and detection programs to protect consumers from identity theft.

Originally scheduled for a Nov. 1, 2008 compliance date, the FTC has now delayed the enforcement date of the Red Flags Rule until June 1, 2010.  For more information on the Rule and compliance delay - click here.

s
Print and bring in this coupon to receive
$20 off
your purchase of $100 or more

Expires December 24, 2009

Not to be used in conjunction with any other offer
Present this coupon at time of purchase
Not applicable to previous purchases, sale merchandise,
Scott Kay or Carol Lipworth Jewelry, shoes,
gift certificates or special orders.

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1741 Elm Hill Pike Nashville, TN 37210-5717