Consumer

Safely destroying passport and ID copies: how to prevent identity fraud

5 July 2026 · 12 min read · DeSnipperaar

A copy of your passport or ID card looks harmless, but it is one of the most sensitive documents you can have at home. Such a copy shows almost everything a fraudster needs to misuse your identity. That is why it is wise to destroy copies you no longer need safely, on paper as well as digitally.

Want to gauge quickly whether you run a risk? Ask yourself these questions.

• Are there still copies of your passport or ID card somewhere in your home?
• Are there photos of your ID document in your phone or in a chat conversation?
• Have you ever emailed a copy for a job application or a rental request?
• Do you throw old copies into the paper recycling unshredded?
• Do you know whether a copy still shows the national ID number legibly?

If you hesitate on any of these, the sections below explain why the copy is so sensitive and how you clear it away safely.

Why a copy of your ID document is so sensitive

Identity fraud rarely starts with a stolen passport. Far more often it starts with a copy that was left somewhere. A fraudster who gets hold of your photo, date of birth, document number and ID number has enough to pass for you. With that, accounts can be opened, subscriptions taken out or purchases made on instalment. The bill then ends up with you. Repairing such fraud often takes months of letters, police reports and phone calls. An unshredded copy in the paper bin is therefore not rubbish to a wrongdoer, but a windfall. Precisely because the consequences last so long, destroying a copy carefully weighs more heavily than most people think.

What is actually on an ID copy?

A copy of an ID document bundles more data than any other household document. At a glance it shows:

• Your photo, which links a face to a name.
• Your full name, date of birth and place of birth.
• The document number and the expiry date.
• Your signature.
• The national ID number, which appears on the passport and on the back of the ID card.
• The machine-readable zone at the bottom, which repeats most of the data again.

Each piece on its own is already sensitive. Together on one sheet they form a complete identity profile. So a copy deserves the same care as the document itself, whether it lies on paper or sits as a file in your phone.

Where copies pile up unnoticed

Almost everyone has handed over copies over the years without thinking about it. They pile up in the most ordinary places. Think of the rental request for a home, the gym membership form, the hotel reception that asked for a copy, or the folder of old job applications with a scanned document still tucked in. When moving house, renting a car or taking out a phone contract, a copy is often asked for too. At home a layer of copies thus gathers in drawers, binders and old mailboxes. The first thing you can do is map where those copies are. Only once you know where they are can you clear them away safely.

May an organisation simply ask for a copy?

Far from always. Under privacy law an organisation may only make a copy of your ID document if there is a legal basis for it. Your employer may do so at the start of employment, a bank may do so when opening an account and a notary may do so for certain deeds. A gym, a webshop or a landlord usually does not have that basis. In many cases you may therefore politely refuse a copy or ask why it is needed. Often showing your document instead of handing over a copy will do. The fewer copies of you that circulate, the smaller the risk. That same principle of spreading as little as possible applies to all confidential papers, as you read in destroying confidential documents.

The ID number: the most sensitive item on the copy

Of all the data on an ID document, the national ID number is the most valuable to fraudsters. It is your unique key with the government, the tax office and healthcare bodies. Organisations without a legal task may not process your ID number at all. Yet it regularly ends up on copies that serve no purpose. When you hand over a copy, it is wise to make the ID number illegible, including in the machine-readable zone at the bottom. If you come across old paperwork that still shows your ID number, treat it with extra care and destroy it at the highest level. More on clearing the ID number from old papers is in ID numbers in old administration.

The watermark and crossing out the number

If you do have to hand over a copy, never give it away blank. Many governments offer guidance and tools to make a safe copy, and the principle is simple to apply by hand. Write across the copy what it is meant for and to whom you give it, cross out the ID number and add the date. Such a copy is still usable for the recipient, but worth far less to a fraudster. The watermark makes it visible that a reused copy does not belong, which discourages misuse. The same goes for digital copies: add a watermark layer before you send a scan, rather than mailing a clean image.

When do you clear away copies you keep yourself?

The simple rule is: as soon as you no longer need a copy, it should go. A finished rental request, a job application that came to nothing, a hotel confirmation from last year, they are all copies that have served their purpose. The longer they lie around, the greater the chance they fall into the wrong hands during a burglary, a move or a clearing of an estate. So go through your papers once a year and take out the copies you no longer need to keep. If you doubt whether you still need something, lean towards destroying, because a copy can always be made again while a leak cannot be undone.

Why tearing or a single-strip shredder is not enough

Tearing a copy in half feels safe, but it is not. Two or four pieces can be reassembled within a minute. A cheap single-strip shredder, which cuts the paper into long strips, also offers too little protection. Those strips can be restored like a simple puzzle, certainly with a sheet bearing such recognisable elements as a photo. For a document showing your full identity you need real shredding, where the paper breaks into small particles. Only then is the data illegible and irreversibly gone. The difference between tearing and shredding is exactly the difference between apparent safety and real safety.

The right DIN levels for ID copies

How finely paper is shredded is expressed in the DIN 66399 standard. For copies of an ID document the higher levels matter.

Level	Particle size	Suitable for
P-2	Strips	Advertising without personal data
P-4	Small particles	Copies with personal data
P-5	Very small particles	Copies with ID number and photo

For an ordinary copy P-4 is the minimum. Because an ID document also shows the ID number and your photo, P-5 is the safer choice. A simple single-strip shredder often does not even reach P-2. More explanation of the levels and what they mean in practice is in DIN 66399 explained.

Digital copies: phone, cloud and email

Paper is only half the story. Most copies these days exist digitally, and they are just as sensitive. A photo of your passport often lingers in several places at once. In your phone gallery, in a sent WhatsApp message, in your sent mail folder and in the automatic cloud backup. A copy you thought you had deleted then still sits in three other places. So go through every location. Delete the photo from your gallery, from the chat conversation, from sent mail and from the cloud. Then also empty the recently deleted folder, because otherwise the file stays there for another thirty days. Only when the copy can no longer be found anywhere is it truly gone.

Having a batch of paper collected with a certificate

If you have no suitable shredder, or you come across a whole stack of copies and old papers, having it collected is the safest and easiest option. You hand the papers over sealed, they are destroyed at the right level and you receive proof. That proof is a certificate of destruction, showing the date and the level applied. For a private individual that is mainly peace of mind, because you know for sure the data was made illegible and did not get left somewhere along the way. We collect at your home within 20 km of Amsterdam with no call-out fee. Through pooled routes we also cover the rest of the country. The nice thing is that you can combine your paper copies in the same collection with other household items that need to go.

Businesses still keep copies of you too

You do not only manage your own copies. Countless organisations have made a copy of you in the past and sometimes keep it far too long. You have the right to ask an organisation what data it holds on you and to request deletion when there is no longer a basis to keep the copy. Especially at places where you once briefly registered, such as a garage, a car-rental firm or a service provider, a forgotten copy sometimes still lies around. A short email asking for the copy to be deleted can remove that risk. How businesses should ideally handle this is in automotive client files with ID copies.

What does destroying copies cost?

Shredding yourself costs no more than the time and a suitable shredder. If you want a larger quantity collected, you pay a fixed price you know in advance, from about 30 euro for the first box. The certificate is included and within 20 km of Amsterdam we charge no call-out fee. Because household items can be combined in a single collection, you do not have to pay separately for each loose stack. For a few loose copies a good cross-cut shredder is therefore enough, while for a big clear-out or a whole administration having it collected is cheaper and demonstrably safe as well.

Common mistakes

• Copies unshredded in the paper recycling. An open paper bin on the street is fairly accessible to a fraudster.
• Only tearing or strip-cutting. Strips and pieces can be reassembled.
• Forgetting digital copies. The photo in your gallery and in the cloud otherwise simply stays.
• Not masking the ID number. That number is the most valuable for fraud.
• Handing over a blank copy. Without a watermark your copy can be reused endlessly.

Clear away safely in 5 steps

1. Map where your copies are, on paper as well as digitally.
2. Decide what may go, meaning every copy that has served its purpose.
3. Shred paper at least to P-4, preferably P-5 for the ID number.
4. Delete digital copies from gallery, chats, mail and cloud, then empty the bin.
5. Have a large stack collected with a certificate as proof.

Private or business, the same sensitivity

Whether a copy lies in a drawer at home or in a company archive, the data on it is equally sensitive. The difference lies mainly in the quantity and in the duty to prove. For an organisation a certificate of destruction is a legal necessity, for you as a private individual it is mainly peace of mind. The way of destroying is the same in both cases: make it illegible at an appropriate level and do not leave the copy half cleared away. Whoever applies the same care at home as a well-organised office runs the smallest risk of identity fraud.

Frequently asked questions

Why is a copy of my passport dangerous?

A copy shows your photo, date of birth, document number and often your national ID number. With that combination a fraudster can open accounts or make purchases in your name. So a copy you no longer need should be destroyed safely.

How do I destroy a passport copy safely on paper?

With a cross-cut shredder at least to DIN P-4, and preferably P-5 for the ID number. Tearing by hand or a single-strip shredder is not enough, because strips can be reassembled.

May an organisation simply ask for a copy of my ID document?

Often not. Only organisations with a legal basis, such as your employer at the start of employment or a bank when opening an account, may make a copy. In many other cases you may refuse or showing your document will do.

What do I do with digital copies on my phone?

Delete photos of your ID document from your gallery, from chat conversations, from sent mail and from cloud backups. Then also empty the recently deleted folder, otherwise the copy stays for days.

Should I mask the ID number when handing over a copy?

Yes. Cross out the ID number, including in the machine-readable zone at the bottom, and add a watermark stating what the copy is for. That way the copy stays usable for the recipient but worth far less to a fraudster.

Conclusion

A copy of your passport or ID card is not an innocent scrap of paper, but a complete identity profile. So hand over as few copies as possible, mask the ID number with a watermark and refuse a copy where you may. Clear away the copies you keep yourself in time, on paper by really shredding at P-4 or P-5 and digitally by going through every location down to the bin. If you have a large stack, have it collected sealed and destroyed with a certificate as proof. That way you keep your identity out of the hands of fraudsters.

See also the pillar on archive destruction for individuals and the related guides on keeping or destroying CDs and DVDs, safely wiping an old phone and safely destroying bank and credit cards.

---

Have copies destroyed safely? Request a quote via desnipperaar.nl or read how destroying confidential documents works. You receive a certificate as proof.

Related sector guides: Hotels: destroying guest registration data.