of mail theft or fraud

ios, your mail may still be forwarded to your old address.

Not only is this a major inconvenience, but it also poses a significant risk to the security of your personal information.

Enabling Informed Delivery

Whether you’re moving or not, Informed Delivery is a free tool you can take advantage of by creating an account with USPS.

Contact MAIKEL DELGADO at (239) 945-9988 or email mdelgado@employeecare.us www.employeecare.us

BY CARRIE KERSKIE Guest Columnist

By proactively filing a Change of Address form, you ensure that your mail is rerouted to your new address, minimizing the chances of important documents falling into the wrong hands. This applies not only to permanent moves but also to seasonal relocations. By changing your forwarding address prior to moving to your summer or winter address, you can prevent mail from piling up in your mailbox while you’re away.

USPS has recently started increasing the security of identity verification questions and is now asking you to provide more sensitive information when filing for a Change of Address.

They even go as far as to ask you for some of the digits in your credit card to confirm that it’s actually you applying for the change of address.

While this may seem intimidating, it’s completely legitimate and is a step in the right direction for protecting against identity theft.

Now criminals can no longer file change of address forms as easily as the could have before.

Thanks to modern technology, USPS offers a valuable tool for defending against mail theft—Informed Delivery. By setting up an online account, you can opt to enable this feature, which provides you with notifications of the mail expected to arrive in your mailbox each day. Before the mail carrier even leaves the post office, you receive a picture of any mail scheduled for delivery.

Imagine you’re expecting a new credit card to be delivered by mail. Without Informed Delivery, you’d have no way of knowing when it will arrive or be able to suspect the possibility of theft. With this feature enabled, simply checking your email allows you to see if the credit card is being delivered that day. If it doesn’t appear, you can expect the possibility of fraud and take action before it’s too late.

Creating an account takes minutes and can give you the peace of mind of knowing that your mail is safe. So, if you haven’t already, take the time to create an online account with USPS, enable Informed Delivery, and don’t forget to file a change of address form next time you move.

Carrie Kerskie, a nationally recognized identity theft and privacy expert located in Southwest Florida, founded the Kerskie Group in 2001, which she now operates with son Kyle Kerskie. The firm is a private investigation agency dedicated to helping identity theft victims to recover effectively and efficiently. Contact her at ck@kerskie.com.