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-Great Cultural Revolution
USPS now photographs all mail
2023-03-03
[Bustle] Title link to original rules.
Article from 2014, but useful to understand 3dc’s Related link, below..
Be careful what you send in the mail, because the U.S. Postal Service could be watching you. A revealing New York Times report sheds light on a little-known investigation tool that may be affecting more Americans than previously thought. Drawing information from a 2014 audit, the report states that in 2013 alone, the U.S. Postal Service approved nearly 50,000 requests to monitor Americans' mail at the request of law enforcement agencies and the USPS' own law enforcement arm, the Postal Inspection Service. Sounds like a violation right off the bat, right? In actuality, the investigation tool, called mail covers, has been used for decades, but it's far from being a perfect system.

The NYT story is based on an audit report posted to the website of the USPS' Office of Inspector General (OIG). The audit reveals that in the 2013 fiscal year alone, the USPS fulfilled 49,000 mail covers requests, which are justified when they can help provide evidence in a criminal investigation. However, the OIG found that the process often lacked efficiency or adequate controls to prevent violation or abuse of the system. Furthermore, many of the requests were approved even though the law enforcement agencies did not follow the OIG's required protocol.

The audit's figure of 49,000 requests is a significant jump from the 15,000 to 20,000 that officials had previously told the NYT about last year. So it's more widely used than we previously thought, but how do mail covers, which, according to the paper, are over a century old, work exactly?

WHAT IS A MAIL COVER?
Mail covers is the name of an investigation tool used by the USPS in cooperation with law enforcement agencies, such as the FBI and local police departments. Mail covers record information from the outside of letters and packages (names, return addresses, etc.) before they are delivered. That information is then sent back to the requesting agency.

According to the Internal Revenue Service, mail cover requests can only be made for primary or subject criminal investigations; they cannot be made for misdemeanor violations alone. Also, law enforcement agencies must obtain a search warrant if they intend to open the package and examine the contents.

Related: Current record everything offered as a customer service by the USPS
Posted by:3dc

#15  It would also suggest that mail-in ballots could be traced back to a point of origin and highlighting such shenanigans such as multiple entries from a single address, unless things are kept so generic as to prevent such tracking, such as drop-off kiosks unless its true that fingerprints are also scanned.
Posted by: swksvolFF   2023-03-03 18:48  

#14  Always a crack. Why you need to own all that sh*t even if you don't use it.
Posted by: M. Murcek    2023-03-03 18:26  

#13  An ITSEC buddy mentioned, a possible hack.
Where you can sign up as someone eles to monitor their mail for things using an anon trash email acct.... if they haven't singed up alread.
Posted by: NN2N1   2023-03-03 18:24  

#12  Quick question for the droolers: Who owns your mail once it's in the box?
Posted by: M. Murcek    2023-03-03 18:23  

#11  Old news. Some people don't like walking / driving to their mailbox for junk mail.

Slobbering idiots.
Posted by: M. Murcek    2023-03-03 18:21  

#10  I'd imagine you could say "Check is in the mail, sent it 3 days ago." and literally forward a pic of said addressed envelope, location, and ETA.
Posted by: swksvolFF   2023-03-03 18:20  

#9  Screen shot of the app sure looks like it.

From under one of the tabs:
Informed Delivery is a free service from USPS that shows you preview images of incoming mail, as well as status updates about your incoming and outbound packages.

Says it sends a B/W scan pic of mailed item, plus transit history and status.

Looks like it does what the other delivery services does, such as 'Brown'. I was the recipient of a wrong address parcel; next day it was picked up and I guess sent to the correct address, all on the senders side complete with a phone call -don't open that please!-.
Posted by: swksvolFF   2023-03-03 18:17  

#8  Read cop fiction. The cameras aren't working or don't show anything useful.
Posted by: M. Murcek    2023-03-03 18:10  

#7  Do they have an app where you can download your last several postal use photos? In case you need to prove you mailed something.
Posted by: jpal   2023-03-03 18:07  

#6  My theory is, every time they photograph my gas bill, that's money that isn't going towards the war on terror, drug smuggling, etc.

Pathetic bastiches...
Posted by: M. Murcek   2023-03-03 17:48  

#5  Makes sense, especially in this age of porch pirate as vocation. Along those lines, like that the freight people are taking pictures of deliveries; sure is a lot more fun that playing I said/He said with pallets wraps.

I believe the concern at the time was that during Obama's 2nd term institutions and procedures being put into place might eventually be used against political rivals and enemies.

I think Robert Michels did some thinking about that.
Posted by: swksvolFF   2023-03-03 16:55  

#4  ^ Can you say that grammatically?
Posted by: M. Murcek   2023-03-03 16:49  

#3  Nothing suddenly new ...Fireman son does it due mail theifs while he is on shift. Called "informed delivery"... but bothers the hell out of me regarding likely big brother abuses.
Posted by: NN2N1   2023-03-03 16:11  

#2  Panic hysteria slobbering.
Posted by: M. Murcek   2023-03-03 14:27  

#1  And if you believe the rumors, fingerprints as well.

I guess if we are re-defining everything, might as well redefine Going Postal



Begs the question: that warrant needed, is it needed if the USPS itself does the search? A sort of because it was freely handed to us, we have jurisdiction?
Posted by: swksvolFF   2023-03-03 14:25  

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