Last week I signed up for the U.S. Postal Service’s “Informed Delivery” option.
Here’s their description:
Informed Delivery® by USPS®
Digitally preview your mail and manage your packages scheduled to arrive soon! Informed Delivery allows you to view greyscale images of the exterior, address side of letter-sized mailpieces and track packages in one convenient location.** Images are only provided for letter-sized mailpieces that are processed through USPS’ automated equipment
So now every day I receive an email with photos of the front of the pieces of mail scheduled for delivery, showing return addresses, etc. They don’t photograph the contents, just the fronts of the envelopes. Sort of like NSA’s keeping of the metadata from the world’s emails.
Initially, I just thought it sounded interesting.
Now I’m wondering what it says about the surveillance capabilities of the postal system and whether there are adequate safeguards in place to prevent misuse. And does it mean we’re all open to “Big Brother” surveillance of what’s being delivered to our homes?
From a comment on one online forum: “Creepy or cool?”
In another spot, it’s called “a stalker’s dream,” based on fears that the USPS privacy controls are vulnerable to identity thieves and stalkers.
The World Privacy Forum (whatever the heck that is) says it “puts consumers at risk.”
I’m still digging into the questions that have been raised about the service. In the meantime, I was wondering what others feel about it? If you’ve signed up, has it been useful? Are you worried about the potential threat to privacy?
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I got half way through signing up for that service the other day and became generally apprehensive. So I shut it down. At the time, I was thinking I really don’t need more texts and emails, and I’ve gotten along fine without it. But this sounds even more sinister…
I have had USPS Informed Delivery for several months now and I find it quite useful.
I travel a lot and even though I have my mail held by USPS I can still see what was to have been delivered on any given day of my absence. I can return from a trip without any big surprises looming in my mailbox.
Additionally, our neighborhood has been plagued by mail thefts from our street side boxes. I now know what was placed in the box by the carrier and would know immediately if anything was missing. I feel much more at risk from the very real possibility of mail theft (where there is access to the entire content of the mail) than from hackers only able to access the front of each piece.
Been using it for some months & generally like it. It’s very helpful when traveling because you receive notifications for held mail. Have also used it for straightening out some misdirected mail after a change-of-address for someone. A few other comments:
(1) The scanning apparently happens at the airport/main USPS facility, not at your local delivery station. So there can be a time lag (usually a day or two) between a scan & delivery. (2) You only get scans of letter-sized pieces (including, bizarrely, stuff like the MidWeek flier) — no PDFs of packages or magazines. (3) When I signed up, I had to do it in person at my local station & provide a government ID for verification, which may have been because it was new service.
Have been using it for months. I live a surveillance unworthy existence, so although I thought about it, I really don’t see what harm there is if big bro gov is watching my pathetic stream of mostly junk mail. I wouldn’t pay for it, but since it’s free and I have a PO box, it’s a gas and time saver not to go to the PO unless there’s something worth picking up.
I thought it was only for PO customers, so good to know it’s available for home delivery also.
It seems to me this means that whether we sign up for it or not, the surveillance is happening.
My only comment: why the hell does anyone need to preview what mail is going to be delivered later in the day?
my only comment:
if you’re that worried about “Big Brother” then Big Brother isn’t your real problem. at all.