{"id":6702,"date":"2022-06-01T17:27:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-01T21:27:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/blog\/?p=6702"},"modified":"2024-04-02T08:45:10","modified_gmt":"2024-04-02T12:45:10","slug":"how-to-stop-junk-mail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/blog\/how-to-stop-junk-mail\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Stop Junk Mail In 7 Simple Steps"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-rank-math-toc-block\" id=\"rank-math-toc\"><h2>Table of Contents<\/h2><nav><ul><li><a href=\"#how-to-stop-junk-mail\">How to Stop Junk Mail\u00a0<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"#1-opt-out-of-consumer-credit-reporting-databases\">1. Opt out of consumer credit reporting databases\u00a0\u00a0<\/a><ul><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#2-unsubscribe-through-dma-choice\">2. Unsubscribe through DMA Choice\u00a0<\/a><ul><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#3-opt-out-of-catalog-choice\">3. Opt out of Catalog Choice\u00a0<\/a><ul><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#4-unsubscribe-from-smaller-direct-marketers\">4. Unsubscribe from smaller direct marketers<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"#valpak\">Valpak\u00a0<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#retail-me-not\">RetailMeNot<\/a><ul><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#5-return-unwanted-junk-mail-to-the-sender\">5. Return unwanted junk mail to the sender\u00a0<\/a><ul><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#6-unsubscribe-from-junk-emails-mark-them-as-spam\">6. Unsubscribe from junk emails\/mark them as spam\u00a0<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"#effectiveness-5\">Effectiveness<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#7-remove-your-information-from-all-data-broker-platforms\">7. Remove your information from all data broker platforms\u00a0<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Tired of offers from credit card companies, political organizations, non-profits, and catalog companies? This guide will teach you how to stop junk mail from being delivered to your home.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Just like how you can <a href=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/blog\/how-to-stop-spam-calls-robocalls\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">opt out of robocalls<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/blog\/how-to-block-stop-spam-texts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">spam texts<\/a> by adding your phone number to the National Do Not Call Registry (donotcall.gov) and activating built-in features within your phone\u2019s OS, there are some simple tips you can follow to <a href=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/blog\/how-to-remove-personal-information-from-the-internet\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">secure your personal information<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here are 7 steps anyone can take to stop junk mail being delivered by the United States Postal Service (USPS) &#8211; setting up a P.O. box not required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"how-to-stop-junk-mail\">How to Stop Junk Mail&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To stop junk mailers, you must go to the source and remove your name from marketing databases. Some of these can be handled one at a time, while others, such as the hundreds of data broker websites out there, will usually require the help of a specialist service.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"1-opt-out-of-consumer-credit-reporting-databases\">1. Opt out of consumer credit reporting databases\u00a0\u00a0<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Credit reporting companies (also known as credit bureaus) gather personal information on consumers from banks and public records. Companies often don\u2019t require your explicit permission when using this data to market credit card deals and other financial products to you. This is due to the terms, conditions, and privacy policies you agreed to when opening certain financial accounts.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you don\u2019t wish to receive pre-approved credit card offers and other financial services deals (like insurance offers), use optoutprescreen.com.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.optoutprescreen.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Optoutprescreen.com<\/a> is the official opt-out service provided by the big four consumer credit reporting agencies. You can opt-out via its website or call 1-888-5-OPT-OUT (1-888-567-8688) to start the process.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"377\" src=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-77.png\" alt=\"Optoutprescreen.com opt out options\" class=\"wp-image-9908\" srcset=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-77.png 1024w, https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-77-300x110.png 300w, https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-77-768x283.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Opting out means your name is removed from the lists supplied by major credit reporting companies \u2013&nbsp; Equifax, Experian, Innovis, and Transunion \u2013 to third-party companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You have two options for opting out:&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Electronic five-year opt-out<\/strong>, which requires consumers to enter their name and address. For best results, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.optoutprescreen.com\/selection\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">the website<\/a> will also ask for your social security number and birthday. However, these two details are not mandatory. Once you\u2019ve completed and submitted the online form, it can take up to 5 days to process your opt-out request.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Mail in permanent opt-out<\/strong>, which requires customers to complete the same online form before printing out and posting a signed Permanent Opt-Out Election form.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"effectiveness\">Effectiveness<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>While Opt Out Prescreen is effective in stopping your information from appearing in some lists, it\u2019s not guaranteed to stop junk mail. You may still receive solicitation from sources that don\u2019t use Consumer Credit Reporting Companies.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The website adds that the opt-out \u201c<em>will not end solicitations from all local merchants, religious and charitable associations, professional and alumni associations, politicians, and companies with which you conduct business.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To opt out of such platforms, it suggests that you go directly to each source and process an opt-out with them individually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"2-unsubscribe-through-dma-choice\">2. Unsubscribe through DMA Choice&nbsp;<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>You can stop unwanted mail by using <a href=\"https:\/\/dmachoice.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">DMA Choice<\/a> (at dmachoice.org). This non-profit organization is run by the Data and Marketing Association (previously Direct Marketing Association) and is endorsed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>DMA Choice offers an online tool to manage the type of direct mail you receive. Unsubscribing from mailing lists is an important part of <a href=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/blog\/how-to-remove-personal-information-from-the-internet\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">protecting your online information<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The DMA Choice website allows consumers to remove their details from several mailing lists. Customers can also customize their preferences and select entire categories like \u201cadvertisements\u201d or \u201ccatalogs.\u201d This can help you stop receiving junk mail from USPS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To sign up, go to the <a href=\"https:\/\/dmachoice.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">DMA Choice website<\/a> and fill in your information, including name, email, and home address. You must pay a $2 service fee before accessing the platform, which will cover you for 10 years.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"906\" src=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-78.png\" alt=\"DMA Choice website - Get started \" class=\"wp-image-9909\" style=\"width:731px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-78.png 1024w, https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-78-300x265.png 300w, https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-78-768x680.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Users can select which categories to opt out of, including Credit Offers, Catalogs, Magazine Offers, and Other Mail Offers.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"effectiveness-1\">Effectiveness<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Unsubscribing through DMA Choice only works for mail you receive as a \u201cprospect,\u201d i.e., from a company you don\u2019t have a prior relationship with and to whom you haven\u2019t explicitly given your data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you are or have been a customer of a company that is sending you junk mail (for example, your bank), you\u2019ll still need to contact that company directly to request a mail opt-out.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"3-opt-out-of-catalog-choice\">3. Opt out of Catalog Choice&nbsp;<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>To stop unwanted mail, you can also sign up for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.catalogchoice.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Catalog Choice<\/a>. This is another non-profit organization, run by The Story of Stuff Project, focused on stopping merchants from sending unwanted mail.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Through this website, consumers can search a database of businesses that may have their personal information.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To sign up for Catalog Choice, customers must enter their name and email address and agree to a confirmation email.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The process of opting out will vary between each business. In some cases, Catalog Choice can automatically process the opt-out for you. In other instances, Catalog Choice will provide customers with a link or telephone number to process the opt-out themselves.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"effectiveness-2\">Effectiveness<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Catalog Choice has an extensive database of over 9,000 marketing catalogs.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, there are some limitations to its effectiveness. For example, Catalog Choice cannot stop catalog marketing addressed to \u201cCurrent Resident.\u201d That\u2019s because the business is blanket mailing a particular area and does not have specific customer information on file.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There\u2019s also no law in the United States that requires businesses to process opt-out requests. That means Catalog Choice relies on the goodwill of businesses to honor opt-outs. However, the company does record any non-compliant businesses.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"4-unsubscribe-from-smaller-direct-marketers\">4. Unsubscribe from smaller direct marketers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Currently, no services can completely stop all unwanted junk mail. However, the three steps above are a helpful way to prevent junk mail delivery from some of the biggest mailing lists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are still a number of smaller but no less persistent direct marketers that you should opt out of to reduce junk mail. This includes direct marketers like Valpak and coupon company RetailMeNot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"valpak\">Valpak&nbsp;<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Valpak is a large-scale marketing company that claims to send coupons to over 41 million homes.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One of its most popular options is a blue envelope that offers recipients a chance to win money (along with plenty of advertisements).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>California residents can remove themselves from these lists by completing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.valpak.com\/ccpa?form=doNotSell\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">this form<\/a> on the Valpak website. Nevada residents can opt-out <a href=\"https:\/\/www.valpak.com\/ccpa?form=nv\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">here<\/a>. Residents from other states can request removal from the mailing list by completing this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.valpak.com\/coupons\/show\/mailinglistsuppression\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">opt-out form<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"706\" src=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-79.png\" alt=\"Valpak mailing list removal request\" class=\"wp-image-9910\" style=\"width:786px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-79.png 1024w, https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-79-300x207.png 300w, https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-79-768x530.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"retail-me-not\">RetailMeNot<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>RetailMeNot and its sister site, Voucher Codes, offer vouchers and discounts to US consumers via the mail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>RetailMeNot partnered with marketing company Valassis a few years ago. This means their opt-out process can be found on a third-party website.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.retailmenot.com\/everyday\/unsubscribe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Follow this link<\/a> and submit your email and home address to Valassis to begin the opt-out process.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Customers are warned it might take several weeks to stop receiving spam mail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"effectiveness-3\">Effectiveness<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p>Once processed, you should stop receiving junk mail from the above companies and their affiliates. But other companies will continue to send you this type of unwanted mail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"5-return-unwanted-junk-mail-to-the-sender\">5. Return unwanted junk mail to the sender&nbsp;<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Another way to limit unwanted junk mail is to complete a \u201creturn to sender\u201d procedure. Refusing the mail will force the USPS to return the junk mail at the sender\u2019s expense.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To do this, recipients should look for a return address printed on the envelope or phrases such as \u201cforwarding service requested\u201d or \u201caddress service requested.\u201d Recipients should then write \u201cRefused. Return to the sender\u201d on the envelope and post it back in the mail. The envelope should remain unopened.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can\u2019t send spam mail back if it has no address or one of the returning phrases printed on it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"effectiveness-4\">Effectiveness<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>This process does not guarantee that you\u2019ll stop receiving unsolicited mail. What\u2019s more, if the spam mail continues, you may have to take a more direct approach and write a request to stop sending spam mail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"6-unsubscribe-from-junk-emails-mark-them-as-spam\">6. Unsubscribe from junk emails\/mark them as spam\u00a0<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Physical junk mail is annoying, but so is electronic junk mail. If your email account is getting flooded with spam emails, you can do two things:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Open spam email and click \u201cUnsubscribe\u201d.<\/strong> You can usually find this option at the top of the email beside the sender\u2019s email address or by scrolling down to the bottom of the email.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"910\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-80-1-910x1024.png\" alt=\"Email promo unsubscribe \" class=\"wp-image-9911\" style=\"width:448px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-80-1-910x1024.png 910w, https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-80-1-267x300.png 267w, https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-80-1-768x864.png 768w, https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/media-80-1.png 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 910px) 100vw, 910px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\" start=\"2\">\n<li>Mark incoming unwanted emails as spam (your email provider\u2019s spam filter should be able to catch these emails in the future and send them straight to the spam folder).&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>You can also block specific emails from getting in touch with you.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"effectiveness-5\">Effectiveness<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>This method will only stop junk emails, not physical mail. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"7-remove-your-information-from-all-data-broker-platforms\">7. Remove your information from all data broker platforms\u00a0<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Completing the above steps will reduce the amount of unwanted mail (physical and email) you receive, but it won\u2019t stop it. Over time, your data will also gradually make its way back onto many of these lists.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But there\u2019s one more step you can take &#8211; opt-out from data brokers.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/blog\/what-are-data-brokers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Data brokers<\/a> are platforms that harvest your personal data from public sources without your knowledge. They know everything about you, including your name, mailing address, contact information like your phone number and email, and details about your extended family.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Data broker sites happily sell your data to any advertisers that want it, along with other third parties like law enforcement agencies, spammers, and cybercriminals. As a result, along with junk mail, data brokers also increase your chances of identity theft, scams, doxxing, and other personal information risks.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are now hundreds of data broker sites in the US, so removing your data manually from these platforms just isn\u2019t feasible for most people.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s why we launched DeleteMe, a service that removes your personal information from data broker platforms. Our service removes customer data from over 580 data brokers (<a href=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/sites-we-remove-from\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">full list here<\/a>). We also rescan each data broker every three months to ensure customer data stays off these platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our plans start from just $10.75 per month. <a href=\"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/privacy-protection-plans\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Click here<\/a> for more details.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tired of offers from credit card companies, political organizations, non-profits, and catalog companies? This guide will teach you how to stop junk mail from being delivered to your home.&nbsp; Just like how you can opt out of robocalls and spam texts by adding your phone number to the National Do Not Call Registry (donotcall.gov) and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":6713,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6702","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-data-privacy"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6702","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6702"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6702\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6702"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6702"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joindeleteme.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6702"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}