BBB is planning a spring “Secure Your ID day for the Tyler and Van communities after Tax Day.

The free shredding event in Tyler is slated for 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday, April 16 at the offices of BBB Serving Central East Texas, 3600 Old Bullard Road. The Van event will take place from 7 a.m. to noon on Saturday, April 30 at 642 Bois D’Arc Place in Van.

Individuals can shred up to three boxes or bags of paper-based materials, amounting to roughly one to two cubic feet.

Better Business Bureau (BBB) Serving Central East Texas is part of an expansive network of BBBs across North America that collaborate to produce the bi-annual Secure Your ID Day event. The program is a BBB-branded identity theft, fraud prevention and educational initiative that features on-site document destruction and distribution of identity protection tips and resources to local communities. Consumers are encouraged to attend the event and take a key step in identity protection by shredding and properly disposing of their sensitive paper documents, as Identity theft is an enormous problem.

According to Javelin Strategy and Research, the number of identity fraud victims reached 13.1 million consumers in 2015 and the cost fell slightly to $15 billion dollars. Last year, the number of victims increased, while the total amount of dollars taken decreased. Identity theft is still a major problem and there are a number of steps you can take to secure your personal information and protect yourself in the future.

“Identity theft is largely a crime of access,” said Kaylen Burgess, community outreach specialist with BBB serving Central East Texas. “Our goal here is to make the information less accessible and empower people to be their own first line of defense against identity theft. With community-based BBBs across North America collaborating simultaneously, we’ll have a tremendous coast-to-coast presence that will reach a lot of people and, hopefully, prevent a lot of theft.”

East Texas Shredding and Shred It are donating their data destruction services. Information on identity theft protection also will be available. For more information about the events, contact BBB at 903-581-5704 or by going to bbb.org