Last week’s news reports that a US Postal Worker was robbed of several mailbox keys for several mail routes in Edmonds acts as a reminder that mail theft is still alive and well.
As noted last
June, check washing through mail theft has been on the rise despite the migration
to online shopping and payments. And according to some, mail theft has migrated
from local individuals to organized groups stealing mail from homes,
apartments/condominiums and even the Postal Services blue mail collection
boxes. While check washing received much attention last year, you can assume
that mail thieves are still on the lookout for opportunities for identity theft
by stealing blank checks, credit cards, and bank/credit card statements with account
numbers on them.
Check washing
is where a criminal takes a check that someone has written, then erases the
recipient in the “to” line and the amount, usually with nail polish remover,
then fills in a new person as the recipient and a new amount, often more than
the original amount.
Here are some
tips to protect your outgoing checks and your other mail from theft,
·
Pay your bills online. This is the safest and quickest way to pay your bills.
·
Deliver your mail to a
post office. Don’t leave your check in
your own mailbox for pickup. Especially if you need to raise the red flag to
let the letter carrier know you have outgoing mail. That flag is a sure sign to
a mail thief to take your mail. Take your check directly to your local post
office. Don’t leave it in the blue box outside but take it inside to the
outgoing mail slot or box inside.
·
Use a pen with blue or
black non-erasable gel ink. Gel ink is more
difficult to remove than ball point ink.
·
Don’t let delivered mail
sit in your mailbox. Collect the mail in your
mailbox as soon as you can after delivery, at least once a day. If you are
away, ask a trusted neighbor to pick up your mail or have the post office hold
your mail until you return.
·
Monitor your bank account. Check your bank account online every few days.
·
Report incidents quickly. Contact your bank as soon as possible after suspicious activity;
banks are generally required to replace funds stolen via fraudulent checks, but
only if the scam is reported within 30 days of the date of your bank statement.
Also, contact the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and credit reporting agencies.
FOX13:
https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/armed-suspect-robs-edmonds-postal-worker-steals-mailbox-keys
South Snohomish County Crime Watch:
https://ssnoccrimewatch.blogspot.com/2023/06/mail-theft-check-washing-is-on-rise.html
AARP Fraud Watch Network:
https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/info-2023/stop-check-washers.html
U.S. Postal Inspection Service:
https://www.uspis.gov/news/scam-article/check-washing
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