An often overlooked aspect of printer ownership is the security of the media in the printer’s paper trays. Many businesses and organizations simply load the paper trays with paper and forget about it until the printer runs out of paper and prompts them to add more paper.
What they may not be aware of is how often the printer runs out of paper; perhaps it does not go through the printer, but is removed from the paper trays by unauthorized persons. It only takes a few seconds for someone to walk up to a printer or copier and remove media from unlocked paper trays. In addition to the obvious monetary losses as a result of paper theft, there are other issues to consider, such as fraud resulting from the theft of official forms used by printers.
There are specific businesses and organizations that seem to be most at risk for paper tray theft and I’ll tackle them one at a time.
The first area we will review is higher education. At most higher education institutions, there are multiple printers located around campus for use by students and faculty. These printers are often equipped with expensive card scanners or other electronic controls to keep track of printing expenses so that people who use the printers can be charged for their use.
What these electronic controls do not address is the simple theft of paper from printers. Costs can be high, even for normal bond paper. Add expensive cardstock or other specialty papers to the mix and losses can skyrocket! An institution with 100 printers on campus, each losing 50 sheets/day to theft, will experience the loss of 10 reams of paper per week.
The second area of concern is the health market, which includes local hospitals, clinics, teaching universities and doctors’ offices. These organizations use tamper-resistant prescription paper, which has been required by Medicaid since 2008. Not only is this type of paper very expensive, it is especially attractive to people attempting to commit fraud by using this paper to create counterfeit scripts. Healthcare providers should keep these types of tamper-resistant paper secure, but they are susceptible to theft by anyone who has a few seconds to open a paper tray.
The third area we will review is the financial market. Banks, stockbrokers, financial planners, or anyone who prints checks with MICR checks need to worry about blank check theft. Checks are typically loaded into the printer tray when printed, then removed and stored in a secure drawer or file cabinet until the next time checks are printed. By installing paper tray locks on the printer’s paper trays, check stock can be kept in the printer, thus avoiding the hassle of loading and unloading check stock throughout the day.
There are various sources of paper tray locks on the market. It is important to work with a company that can provide high quality products as well as technical support. Most locks are easy to install, yet provide a secure solution to meet your unique requirements.
