Today, April 21, the Covinton-Newton County Chamber of Commerce, along with sponsor member Newton Federal and member A Cut Above Shredding, will offer local residents and businesses the opportunity to bring documents for shredding and recycling at no charge.

Trucks and volunteers will be on hand from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. to help securely shred your documents. The event will be held in the Chamber of Commerce parking lot, located at 2101 Clark Street.

"Federal law requires a business or organization to comply with laws and regulations that are in place to protect employee and customer’s information. Documents must be destroyed, not just thrown in the trash," said Lisa Oglesby, director of programs for the chamber. "As a consumer, 56 percent of identity theft victims that could trace the source of the theft learned that thieves took something that was in their own possession.

"Identity theft — someone stealing your personal information to use for illegal purposes — is a crime that is growing exponentially worldwide. A 2007 Federal Trade Commission report estimated that nearly 10 million Americans had been victims of identity theft in the previous year."

In conjunction with Shred Day, residents and business will have the opportunity to bring their used cell phones to the Chamber for recycling as well.