How to Stop Junk Mail With the FTC

Junk mail can be filled with credit card offers that someone can steal if they are simply thrown away.

Junk mail can be an irritating, frustrating and seemingly unsolvable problem. Such mail is not only annoying, it can also be filled with risky scams and put you at risk of identity theft. The Federal Trade Commission lists a number of steps you can take to reduce or even eliminate the amount of junk mail you get by simply signing up for some opt-out programs, or even getting the FTC to take on the particularly persistent marketers.

Instructions

1. Call the toll-free opt-out number (1-888-5-OPTOUT) for the three credit bureaus: Experian, TransUnion and Equifax, Inc. Provide your home telephone number, name and Social Security number when prompted on the phone call, which will be confidential and used only to process the opt-out request. Alternatively, visit OptOutPrescreen to do this online. This will keep you from getting pre-screened credit offers. You can also notify the credit bureaus that you don't want to share personal information for promotional offers, period. Finally, you can personally send a letter to each of the credit bureaus' addresses listed on the FTC's website.

2. Register for the Direct Marketing Association's Mail Preference Service at the DMAchoice website, which keeps most national companies from sending you junk mail for five years, for a $1 fee. This will not stop organizations that do not use DMA's Mail Preference Service from continuing to send you junk mail, however.

3. Send a letter to your local Department of Motor Vehicles. States may not distribute personal information, except to government agencies, insurance underwriters and other legally interested businesses, under the Drivers Privacy Protection Act. Use the sample opt-out letter on the FTC site as a guideline, and write the letter to your local DMV.

4. File a complaint with the FTC if some marketers aren't getting the message. The FTC uses complaints to detect patterns of illegal behavior on the part of marketers and such complaints can lead to investigations and prosecutions; however, the FTC doesn't resolve individual consumer complaints. Click the "here" link under the FTC Complaint Assistant logo on the right side of the FTC Complaint Assistant website. Answer the questions you are asked and submit them to lodge the complaint.

References

• Federal Trade Commission: Unsolicited Mail, Telemarketing and Email
• FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection: Before You Submit a Complaint

Resources

• Online DMV: Mailing Address of DMV in Each State
• FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection: Before You Submit a Complaint
• OptOutPrescreen: Home
• DMAchoice: Home