Oh, if they’d only devote this much effort into getting a haircut, a job and becoming a decent member of society. But like Forest told us, “stupid is as stupid does.” (Actually I think his momma always said that.)
Once again the holidays approach. And those who do dastardly deeds, like the porch pirates, are gearing up to target shoppers. Detective Chan recommended I pass on three very popular scams circulating this year, misrepresenting the United States Postal Service. “Forewarned is Forearmed,” so don’t fall prey and get caught with your pants down this holiday season! (Note: the “surprise package” is pretty diabolical and the newest scam. I already received one!)
The USPS Text Msg. You’ve mailed or ordered an item or two and you get the following txt msg on your phone (apparently it’s called SMISHING):
USPS NOTICE: Your shipment has been processed at our facility but is currently on hold due to incomplete address information. To facilitate timely delivery, please verify your address by following the link provided: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2sBtlg2Ux4
Wishing you an exceptional day for the USPS team!
So how did USPS get my phone number to send me a txt: Hmmm? And come on…wishing me an exceptional day! You can click the above link as it just takes you to the below Youtube video from the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) about this texting SCAM (honest!), or watch it here:
Counterfeit Postage Stamps. Ancient ancestor once say, “If sounds too good to be true, truth probably not present case.” We’re all aware postage jumped 5 cents in July to $.73. The first USPS “Forever” Postage stamps (without denomination) was The Liberty Bell in 2007 and sold for $.41. A book of twenty stamps at that time cost $8.20. At todays rate of $.73 that book costs $14.60.
I did a search on “discounted postage” and found a site (canptink[dot]store) selling books of stamps for a wonderfully low price 5 books for only $29.99: that’s $5.99 a book or about $.30 cents a stamp…WoW! So I decided to try it out. I paid with PayPal as this was a test and I got the books of stamps quickly mailed from BEIRUI 4044 Westholloway Pkwy, Houston TX 77082.
Upon close examination, I saw they were not the quality you’d find from the USPS. But what the heck…why not use them this holiday…SCREECH! Not a good idea. Why? Ah, they might prosecute you, too:
Well, I reported it to the Postal Inspection Service, who said thank you and we’ll have an analyst look into it and get back to you if we need anything else. They added this caveat.:
“We encourage you to not use postage purchased from unapproved postage providers. Items found affixed with counterfeit postage are considered the property of the United States Postal Service (USPS) and are subject to seizure. The sale, distribution, purchase, and/or use of counterfeit postage can result in action by the USPIS. For more information on counterfeit stamps, please visit our website: https://www.uspis.gov/news/scam-article/counterfeit-stamps.“
So, basically USPS can seize items found to have counterfeit postage and you’ll have to prove your innocence to get your items back, be that a Christmas card or package. Also, they can prosecute you for using the counterfeit postage!
Last, The Anonymous Gift (in my opinion the most dangerous!) It is called BRUSHING! You get a package in the mail with a gift inside. But there is no senders name or address, or even a retailer’s name? But there is a nice Big Note inside: SCAN TO SEE WHO YOUR SURPRISE SENDER IS and a QR code.
DON’T DO IT! Once the code is scanned, all the information from that phone will be sent to scammers. They receive all access to the phone. All personal and financial information is accessible to the scammers and often the victim’s bank accounts are drained. Here’s more info from USPS: https://www.uspis.gov/news/scam-article/brushing-scam. However, I find the below YouTube video more informative:
Whew! That drained me. So to enjoy HAPPY HOLIDAYS this season, remember (1) USPS will never txt about needing package delivery information, (2) don’t buy ridiculously cheap postage stamps you find online, and (3) NEVER scan QR codes in packages you didn’t order or not from anyone you can positively identify as the sender!
SEASONS GREETINGS!
“Guessing is cheap, but wrong guess expensive. I can not afford it myself.”
– Keeper of The Keys, 1932, Chapter 4
The Postman on Holiday 
I’ve been receiving the “can’t deliver package because we don’t have a complete address” message for at least three years, a couple of times a month. I’ve always deleted them immediately, because any package-delivery service that doesn’t use GPS to get to the right address is not for real. Thanks for all the warnings!
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I know Barbara, same here on the txts. I hate to admit it, but I didn’t scan the QR code, because I didn’t know how at the time. I finally figured out it must be some kind of ruse!
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