Mail theft is on the rise in Massachusetts

On average, the United States Postal Service processes and delivers over 500 million pieces of mail each day. That means, on any given day, an identity thief has many opportunities to steal your identity using one of the most low-tech methods around: your mail.

Identity theft occurs when someone steals your personal information, such as your Social Security number or bank account information, to commit fraud or other crimes. And your mail provides easy access to this information. Think about everything sent or received in the mail: checks, credit card bills, credit card offers, utility bills, tax-related mailings from your employer or charitable organizations. The list goes on and on.

Unfortunately, even though mail theft is a federal offense, thieves still do it. Coming into the holiday season when so many people send gifts of cash or checks to family members, the thieves are out in full force.

In addition to attacking letter carriers to steal their special blue mailbox keys or following behind the local mail carriers and checking the mail they drop off at homes along their route, they have now started going into areas with common mailbox receptacles that are shared with multiple businesses or residents.

USPS has put together some tips for keeping your mail secure:

• Consider getting a PO Box or a mailbox that needs a key to retrieve mail!
• Never leave mail in your mailbox overnight or on weekends. If you’re going to be out of town, have a friend collect the mail or have the post office hold it until you return.
• Bring your outgoing mail, especially items that have personal information inside, to a post office. It may be less convenient but it’s the safer option. If you must put your mail in your mailbox, most experts recommend against putting up that red flag as it doesn’t just alert the mail carrier you have something in your mailbox. It’s a signal to a thief too!
• Monitor your bank accounts. Be sure that payments processed match the amounts you authorized. Review copies of checks you’ve written too! Mail thieves use chemicals to change the name of the recipient and the amount of the check.
• Shred your mail before putting it in the trash. And don’t put your trash out until the morning it’s scheduled to be picked up. It’s a lot harder for a thief to inconspicuously steal or pick through your trash in the daylight.

Please share this information with family and friends to help everyone get through the holiday season without experiencing this problem.