Company that dumped private records in public trash is fined

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A national company that dumped records in public trash cans without shredding it or removing personal information has agreed to pay a nearly $500,000 fine. Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt sued SearchTec in 2017, alleging it disposed of documents containing clients’ personal information in garbage bins around Topeka. The company, which has a satellite office in Kansas, manages business documents and generally performs searches for law firms, service companies and lenders. The lawsuit was settled last week, with SearchTec ordered to pay the fine and make changes in its business practices to comply with the the Kansas Consumer Protection Act.