Lee County Clerk & Comptroller Kevin Karnes is hosting his semi-annual shredding event in Cape Coral this time around on Saturday, November 8th, from 9-11 a.m. at the John. E. Manning Government Complex, at 1039 SE 9th Place.
The last time The Big Shred took place in Cape Coral, the Lee Clerk team shredded more than 5,500 pounds of documents for community members.
Karnes hosts this free event twice a year throughout Lee County to help citizens keep their personal information safe by providing them with a convenient way to securely dispose of their confidential records.
This is the fifth Big Shred the Clerk’s office has hosted since the event’s inception in 2023. Past events have taken place in Estero, Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres and Fort Myers, and in total, they brought in more than 25,200 pounds of confidential documents, which were safely shredded and disposed of.
“At the Clerk’s office, we serve as the keeper of all official and court records in the county, and that makes cybersecurity and ensuring public information is protected our top priorities,” Karnes said. “We created The Big Shred as a way to help our community members keep their personal information at home safe, and I couldn’t be prouder of how much this event has grown.”
Identity theft is a common problem and occurs when someone uses your personal or financial information without your permission. Thieves can gather this kind of information through trash, which is why it’s so important to properly dispose of documents that contain information like your home address, Social Security number, birthday, banking and credit card numbers, or anything else identifiable on it.
To take part in The Big Shred, all participants have to do is drive up and hand off their confidential documents to a Clerk team member, who will then walk them to the on-site shredding truck for secure disposal. Documents must be in a box. No plastic bags or electronics will be accepted.