Mail security
Test your knowledge of mail safety. Some of these tips are smart ideas and some aren’t. Select the smart ideas; then click Submit to check your answer.
Notify the post office immediately if you change your address.
Get a mailbox that you must unlock with a key to remove your mail.
Don’t leave your mail for long periods of time in visible, unguarded areas (e.g., apartment lobbies)
Reduce your risk of mail fraud by signing up for electronic statements or bills.
Review your statements both in paper and online to detect suspicious activity and fraud.
If you’re out of town, put a hold on your mail delivery or have a person you trust pick it up.
Don’t put outgoing mail in your residential mailbox. It could be stolen.
Put outgoing mail in a secure USPS mail box or hand it directly to a uniformed USPS mail carrier.
Use an electronic bill pay service to help keep your information safe.
If a company’s regular bills or statements stop reaching you, contact that company immediately.
If you stop receiving mail, call the post office immediately.
If you move, wait 90 days before informing the post office.
When you pay bills by mail, put them in your own mailbox for the mail carrier to pick up.
If you stop receiving mail, wait at least 7 days before contacting the post office.
If you’re going away, ask the post office to send your mail to your temporary address (e.g., hotel).
Smart ideas for protecting your mail
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Keep trying. There are 11 smart tips to keep your mail safe listed.
If you use the red flags found on some mailboxes to alert your mail carrier of outgoing mail, you are also alerting potential thieves that outgoing mail is in the box!
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