More than a dozen KFC employment applications were exposed from inside a trash bag Wednesday night, showing the names, addresses and social security numbers of the applicants.

The manager of the store, which is located on 149th Street, says documents with private information are usually shredded before they are discarded, but the employee responsible for closing the store Wednesday night threw the applications out intact.

The applications were discovered by a woman walking along 149th Street early Thursday morning. She says she was shocked to find the papers strewn along the sidewalk for anyone to take or read and worried the applicants may fall victim to identity theft.

News 12 The Bronx contacted many of the applicants to inform them of the situation.

According to the store manager, the employee responsible for improperly discarding the documents has been suspended.

A corporate spokesperson from KFC issued a statement saying, ?The franchise is investigating the report and will take any steps necessary to ensure confidential documents are safeguarded.?