In
goverment institutions, burn bags are most commonly used for the collection of
classified materials that are to be destroyed. Specific policies vary, but generally full burn bags are periodically collected by cleared building staff, and completely destroyed (by fire, thus the name). Burn bags containing material classified as
Top Secret tend to have extensive
paper work involved, while destruction of
Confidential material is much less formal. In some instances, more informal burn bag services are used for destroying paperwork that is merely
proprietary or
sensitive. For example, at
NASA headquarters, the regular mail service will pick up burn bags with no
classified material in it for destruction, where as
classified material requires arranging a special pickup.
In institutions run by the
United States goverment, the bags usually have red and white diagonal stripes. This is so they are easily identifiable and more
difficult to wander off with. Depending on the sensitivity of the material they can range from
paper sacks that are stapled shut all the way to heavy canvas bags that have
tamper-proof seals.
As an aside,
Spy Game is (as far as I know) the first movie to feature a burn bag. The useage in
Spy Game is particularly humorous as
Robert Redford's character uses a burn bag, intended to improve security, to hide documents thus subverting security.