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Digitally preview incoming USPS mail and packages

informeddelivery.usps.com

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Re: Digitally preview incoming USPS mail and packages

#41

Post by secabeen »

sl1ck731 wrote: post #37

This has been great for deciding if I want to walk out to the mailbox in the winter or not. But I believe signing up for this caused me to get a ton of junk mail. There is something about either forwarding/address changing or this informed delivery that allows USPS to sell your new address to junk mailers. I signed up for both at the same time and was flooded with new junk mail the day I moved in. It gives me a serio…

It's the forwarding/address changing. They sell that DB widely, so that companies can update their records within the forwarding window. Junk mailers buy it too.

Re: Digitally preview incoming USPS mail and packages

#42

Post by lacey »

crazygringo wrote: post #38

I tried signing up for this 3 months ago, and was shocked to receive images for the mail of literally everyone in my building (I'm one of seven apartments). Huuuge privacy violation. (It's just images of the envelopes, but that still tells you a lot.) I unsubscribed and then went to file feedback, and got an immediate reply explaining this was by design : > Thank you for participating in Informed Delivery®. You recen…

I had a similar experience after moving a year ago. I kept receiving the emails for mail going to my previous address.

This was despite my having filed a change of address.

I suggested that this was a privacy problem and was told that it was my responsibility to stop the emails if I didn’t want to continue receiving them. After two or three more back-and-forth emails I still had absolutely no acknowledgement from them that this is a problem.

Re: Digitally preview incoming USPS mail and packages

#43

Post by nkozyra »

This is still a security concern.

I live in a building in NYC with a shared mailbox for both apartments. I can see every piece of mail my neighbor gets.

Granted, I see this when I open the mailbox, but having a digital record of it in inherently insecure email is a bit concerning.

Re: Digitally preview incoming USPS mail and packages

#44

Post by dylan604 »

Shivetya wrote: post #29
visviva wrote: post #5

Why though?

I use it to know when something important is to arrive. they also will list packages to. I don't care for much of what shows. Magazines never have a picture but get a blank stating no picture for the piece is available. it just comes down to convenience. they already scan everything so why not take advantage of it. would I pay for the service, probably not unless the cost per month as trivial

>Magazines never have a picture but get a blank stating no picture for the piece is available.

This is interesting. We have this service for my address, but don't get magazines so I haven't seen it. I wonder if this has to do with the size/format of the scanner being designed for envelopes only, or if it's something crazy like fear of copyright infringement?

Re: Digitally preview incoming USPS mail and packages

#45

Post by Bedon292 »

sl1ck731 wrote: post #37

This has been great for deciding if I want to walk out to the mailbox in the winter or not. But I believe signing up for this caused me to get a ton of junk mail. There is something about either forwarding/address changing or this informed delivery that allows USPS to sell your new address to junk mailers. I signed up for both at the same time and was flooded with new junk mail the day I moved in. It gives me a serio…

Its not informed delivery that did it. I signed up for this a while back with no change. It was the forwarding address thing. When I last did it there was a bunch of boxes you had to uncheck to not 'sign up' for all the other stuff.

Re: Digitally preview incoming USPS mail and packages

#46

Post by abarringer »

SlowRobotAhead wrote: post #39
dontbenebby wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the attack is that they can see a credit card is on it's way to your mailbox, then snatch it out of the mailbox while you're at work. Things like this are why I moved all my financial stuff over to a PO box.

How many attackers are local to you? This requires proximity obviously, I just have to think that’s even more rare. Maybe there are niche credit card thieves that like to target just the area they live in. Seems like a lot of additional risk as now you aren’t just committing CC fraud but also mail fraud.

I work in the Credit card industry. Account origination fraud using the real address is a thing. The bad guys hire mules to check mailboxes daily until the card arrives. This would greatly simplify that task.

Re: Digitally preview incoming USPS mail and packages

#47

Post by dylan604 »

omilu wrote: post #23
artificial wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Joining? This is the result of it. Every parcel and package is photographed and available to LE.

I'm pretty sure it's all photographed and stored wether u sign up or not.

Not sure of the down votes, but I have the same assumption. Actually, my guess is that they were doing this first, and then someone said, "Hey, we could charge people for this as a service, and then that would offset some of the costs." Of course that person would not have received a raise or bonus for the idea though.

Re: Digitally preview incoming USPS mail and packages

#48

Post by SlowRobotAhead »

abarringer wrote: post #46
SlowRobotAhead wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How many attackers are local to you? This requires proximity obviously, I just have to think that’s even more rare. Maybe there are niche credit card thieves that like to target just the area they live in. Seems like a lot of additional risk as now you aren’t just committing CC fraud but also mail fraud.

I work in the Credit card industry. Account origination fraud using the real address is a thing. The bad guys hire mules to check mailboxes daily until the card arrives. This would greatly simplify that task.

Ah, mules. That makes more sense because people are really stupid. Takes the locality requirement off the “brains” of the operation.

Re: Digitally preview incoming USPS mail and packages

#49

Post by verst »

This issue is a privacy / security nightmare.

I had my mail forwarded to my colleague while I was traveling for business for 2 months. Signed up for informed delivery with his address but my name (that's how I was forwarding mail).

Not only did I not have to verify that I live at that address and hence started receiving emails with images of my incoming mail, but I also received images for his and his wife's mail.

Trying to set up informed delivery for my address required some sort of in person address verification which I didn't feel like completing, but the emails with scans of incoming mail still are sent to me daily (which is all I needed anyway). Very concerning how anyone could easily observe my mail this way.

By the way, it seems that address verification is only required to access some sort of dashboard, but this doesn't prevent the emails with images of incoming mail to be sent.

Re: Digitally preview incoming USPS mail and packages

#50

Post by sathomasga »

SlowRobotAhead wrote: post #8
omilu wrote: post #2

This feature is great. See a grayscale scale image of the envelopes and packages being delivered to your house everyday.

What decision or choices do you make based on that new data stream? What is the advantage, because I really don’t get the idea. Edit: I see below; that theft awareness and not having to go check the mailbox are the features... ok, I guess. I have trouble believing that this applies to so many people they need to support a public facing service for it.

Also, if your spouse/partner picks up the mail and then forgets to let you know something arrived for you, you'll have a reminder to ask
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