Make Your “Mail Moment” A Daily Event

Leaving your mail in the mail receptacle overnight is an invitation for trouble. It only takes one opportunity for someone looking to steal your identity to hit the jackpot. Postal customers should remove all incoming mail from their mail box each day. Innocent looking standard bulk business mail can contain valuable information for identity thieves, giving them an opportunity to do great damage to your credit. Do not leave outgoing mail for collection in your mail box overnight.

Be aware of federal holidays when there is no mail delivery. Do not leave mail for collection on federal holidays. Guard your mail as closely as you would your check book. The Postal Inspection Service receives many reports on identity theft with information obtained from the mail.

If you know that someone has tampered with your mail, file a report with your local law enforcement and contact the Postal Inspection Service. You can file a mail theft report on the Postal Service website at www.usps.com or you can call the Postal Inspection Service at 877-876-2455.

When you will be away from your home overnight, ask a neighbor to collect your mail for you or put your mail on hold with your letter carrier.

For more information about purchasing stamps, stamps by mail, postal regulations, a free subscription to USA Philatelic magazine, Post Office events, the location of the nearest postal store or contract unit, or for answers to your specific Postal Service questions, contact USPS at 1-800-275-8777, or visit www.usps.com. To schedule a presentation for your community, club or group on how the Postal Service brings the Post Office to your home or office computer, call 239-573-9638.

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Please Note: For broadcast quality video and audio, photo stills and other media resources, visit the USPS Newsroom at www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/welcome.htm.

An independent federal agency, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 149 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes, six days a week. It has 34,000 retail locations and relies on the sale of postage, products and services, not tax dollars, to pay for operating expenses. Named the Most Trusted Government Agency five consecutive years by the Ponemon Institute, the Postal Service has annual revenue of $75 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail.