this post was submitted on 23 Aug 2023
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Title.

This applies to all countries, but please state where you are from to avoid confusion.


With the amount of junk mail people get weekly, I was curious if there are ways you can block, remove or filter the actual mail from ever getting to your mailbox.

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[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The only way is to individually call senders and ask them to stop.

The US Mail system will not take action against junk mail because junk mailers pay for the majority of the upkeep of the mail system.

Think of junk mail like blood plasma. In order to get those red blood cells to you, you need them to be embedded in plasma so they can move through the system.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Thanks for the information; prior to the amount of junk mail today, was this or something similar the case for the pony express or OG mail service?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

I don’t know but I doubt it. When logistics were way more expensive they were probably only available to rich people.

Like a lot of the free or cheap services we use today, the US Postal Service is supported by ads.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Be careful about "unsubscribing" to various services.

They will unsubscribe you, but then they also have all of your information (name, address, anything else) on record and confirmed. They can profit when the sell that data to another mailer "service". It's like a Hydra.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Which country? I don't think this is the case in germany

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Right, many Europeans have basic consumer protections lol

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Absolutely. Unrelated to mail but related to data, Microsoft 365 comes with “Microsoft Defender for Individuals”; it monitors the dark web and HIBP for leaks… you can many different things from your personal information to your cards and insurance… sounds interesting at first until you see that Microsoft has partnered with Experian if i recall correctly, so you’re giving information away to a data broker/credit broker.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Yeah that tracks, do Google next haha

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago (2 children)

You say all countries, but it's obvious that this is country specific. So here's my tip: move to Canada, the postal service has a duty to respect "no junk mail sings".

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Yup, you can put a red dot in your mailbox as an indicator that you don't want any unaddressed mail. You will still get anything with your address on it and political party mail (they have to deliver those) but it cuts out the best majority of crap.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

All countries, as in this post isn't just focusing on one country.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

I guess in that sense that is the tip for Canada.

And yeah it's great. I know a number of Americans who were quite surprised, and pleased. Yeah the post is somewhat more expensive overall, but you have a choice not to get flooded with spam which is totally worth it.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

I’ve taken the time to annoy the senders. If they come with a prepaid “business reply mail” envelope you can use this in two ways:

  • rip up everything except the envelope into small pieces. Put that into the envelope and mail it back to them.
  • if you’re dedicated: get a box and fill it with bricks. Tape the envelope on the box and mail it back to them.

They have to pay the postage either way, but one will cost a lot more than the other.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I use an app called paperkarma. You send them a pic of the junk, they manually unsubscribe you.

They've gone to a subscription model because of course they have, I'd be eager to hear about alternatives if any exist.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Thanks for this, it appears that they have a lifetime option and through Honey, it can be brought down to a $41 on time payment.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

In the U.S. Use something like virtual post mail, or any mailbox service like the ups store . They will filter out all bulk mail. This does not apply to PO boxes, they will not filter any mail.

https://www.virtualpostmail.com/

I love virtual post mail. They'll open your mail, scan it, email it to you. You never have to deal with the mailbox again.

And they also remove all the bulk mail. So you don't get any spam.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

https://www.dmachoice.org/register.php

In the US, you can register here to "reduce promotional mail offers from companies or organizations you don’t have a business relationship with." It costs $4 ($5 if you opt to mail in a form instead of filling out the online form), but it registers you for 10 years.

I did this about 7 years ago and I haven't seen any junk mail since. I added my wife's name under the "add another version of your name" section (you can have 5 alternate names listed) and junk mail to her stopped too.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Thanks for this; just signed up!

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Nope, but I wish we were getting more junk mail. Every now and then there's a van driving through the city trading junk paper for stuff like paper towels, napkins, toilet paper, baking paper, aluminum foil, packing tape, soap, etc..

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

What are they doing with the junk paper?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

I guess they recycle it. Checking their website, larger quantities of paper can be traded-in for cash based on color and quality.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

I’m in Canada. We’ve never gotten junk mail because our mail delivery person put a green sticker inside the box that says no flyers. We never asked for it, it was always just there. When they upgraded the mail boxes, they put new stickers in too. It’s awesome.