According to the
Environmental Protection Agency, Americans throw away more than 4 million tons
of junk mail each year, making the garbage can a goldmine for fraud artists.
Better Business Bureau serving Eastern North Carolina (bbb.org)
offers six opt-out methods to help consumers reduce junk mail and protect
themselves against identity theft.
1.
Pre-Approved Credit Card
Offers
Pre-approved credit card offers are an easy target for
identity thieves. They can steal incoming mail and use these offers to open
fraudulent credit accounts. Stopping these pre-screened credit offers can help
reduce the chances of identity theft.
To "opt-out" of receiving
pre-approved credit card offers for at least five years, and perhaps
permanently, consumers can call 1-888-5-OPTOUT (567-8688) or visit: www.optoutprescreen.com.
This service is offered by the three major credit reporting bureaus, Equifax,
Experian and TransUnion. Consumers will be asked for personal information,
including their name, address, birth date and Social Security Number. This
information is only used to process requests and will remain confidential. This
procedure will need to be followed for each adult family member.
2.
Solicitations Sent to Children
If a child under age 13 is
being mailed advertisements or credit card offers, it could be a sign that
identity theft has occurred. Parents should contact the three major credit
reporting bureaus, listed below, and inform them of the situation.
a. Equifax:
1-800-525-6285
b. Experian: 1-888-397-3742
c. TransUnion:
1-800-680-7289
3. Catalogues
Consumers’ mailboxes can often be
overrun with catalogues, even if they've never shopped with the company before.
This is likely because those consumers have, at some point, made a catalogue or
online purchase with a company that handed over their contact information to
Abacus, an alliance of catalogue and publishing companies. To stop individual
catalogue deliveries, consumers can contact the specific company in question. To
stop mass mailings, consumers can e-mail, optout@abacus-us.com, or write to Abacus,
Inc., P.O. Box 1478, Broomfield, Colorado 80038.
4. Direct Mail
Offers
Direct Marketing Association is a trade group with
5,200 member companies that use telephone, mail, and the Internet to pitch their
products directly to consumers. To stop receiving mailings from DMA members,
consumers can go to www.dmachoice.org.
DMA regularly updates its list, but the companies it notifies to remove names
from their mailing lists may not be as prompt to act. It may take as long as six
months before solicitations from all DMA members stop.
5.
Coupon
Packs
To stop receiving coupon packs, consumers can fill out
an online request form at: www.coxtarget.com/mailsuppression/s/DisplayMailSuppressionForm.
Other requests can be directed to the sender on the printed envelope
received.
6. "Resident" and "Occupant" Mailings
Consumers can
remove their address from "resident" and "occupant" mailings that offer various
goods and services by contacting Valassis—formerly known as ADVO, Inc.—either by
phone 1-888-241-6760, or through an online form at www.advo.com/consumersupport.html.
Consumers can also send a written request to ADVO, Inc. Customer Assistance,
P.O. Box 249, Windsor, Connecticut 06095.
“With ID theft
on the rise, it is essential that consumers take action to protect themselves,”
says Beverly Baskin, president and CEO of BBB serving Eastern North Carolina.
“Opting-out of unnecessary junk mail is a simple step that can reduce unwanted
stress and prevent the loss of money or other valuables.”
A
2010 Javelin Strategy and Research survey on ID theft estimates that more than
11.1 million Americans were victimized in 2009. This is an increase of 34
percent since 2007 and resulted in the loss of more than $54 billion.
Baskin also
recommends shredding all documents that contain sensitive information, or that
can be used to activate an account. To further assist consumers BBB is hosting
“Secure Your ID” Day on Saturday, October 23 from 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Participants are encouraged to bring up to three bags or boxes of documents to
the Coastal Federal Credit Union, located off Wake Forest Road at 1000 St.
Albans Drive, Raleigh, NC 27609. These documents will be shredded for free, on
the spot. BBB and sponsoring organizations will be distributing tips and
information to help consumers protect their identity, both online and off.
BBB’s “Secure Your ID” Day is locally presented by Coastal Federal
Credit Union, with free shredding provided by ProShred Security and Cintas
Document Management. Nationally, BBB has partnered with the National Foundation
for Credit Counseling to host the event as part of the second annual National
Protect Your Identity Week, October 17-23, 2010. Additional event
information is available at www.easternnc.bbb.org/secure-your-id.
