Stop Junk Mail and Unwanted Calls from Telemarketers to Enhance Your Privacy

In today’s digital world, privacy and security should be our highest priority and having your personal information in large marketing databases of organizations that you don’t even know is definitely not the ideal situation. There’s more about you in these databases that you may realize. Some of the data may be outdated or even inaccurate. The type of data these marketing companies typically have about people includes some or all of the following (this is not a complete list, just a sample):

1. First, middle and last name
2. Age
3. Date of birth
4. Gender
5. Marital status
6. Social Security Number
7. Ethnicity
8. Hobbies (gardening, travelling, sports, etc.)
9. Residence information (street address, mailing address, rent/own, type of dwelling, length of residence, number of adults, number of children. etc.)
10. Education level
11. Political affiliation
12. Income level
13. Financial data (preferred methods of payment, lines of credit, offline and online purchases, etc.)
14. Vehicles (total number of vehicles in household, make/model, auto insurance renewal date)

Of course, the Web sites that you visit gather and store so much information about you, what you like, what you do, what you have, where you are, who you are, and the list goes on. Luckily, there are things you can do to protect your privacy and get off of the mailing lists and telemarketers’ databases. Here’s a list I’ve put together of some of the Web sites that are useful in reducing the junk mail and unwanted phone calls. You will find that most of these organizations are very helpful and if you talk to them on the phone, they’re pleasant to deal with and will be glad to remove your name from their mailing list.

1. DMA Choice can be used to stop snail mail (the traditional mail delivered by the U.S. Post Office) as well as the email. They have a database that allows you to opt-in or opt-out of the unsolicited promotional mail from Data & Marketing Association (DMA). The Federal Trade Commission encourages consumers to use DMA Choice and suggests that registering online is the fastest way to see results. The organization charges a processing fee of $2 for a period of ten years.
   
2. CatalogChoice.org is a non-profit organization helping to stop unwanted catalogs and other junk mail at your home or business. Their service is free. If you use the DMA Choice, along with CatalogChoice, you should be in very good shape.
3. DoNotCall.gov is a free U.S. government’s service to reduce unwanted telemarketing calls. This service only applies to personal phone numbers, business numbers and fax numbers are not covered. You can register your home or mobile number on DoNotCall.gov Web site or call 1-888-382-1222 from the phone number you want to register. It should take up to 31 days for the telemarketers to stop calling you, after which you can report them to the FCC. You can also report robocalls (recorded messages). The penalty for violating the registry or placing a robocall is $41,484 per call. The number you use for registration is not stored or kept with your phone number and the registration is permanent. You can remove your name from the registry any time. Just be aware that only sales calls are covered by this service. Charities, political organizations, and telephone surveyors may still call you. Visit Consumer FAQs for more information on who can still call you. There’s a lot of good information on that page.
4. OptOutPrescreen.com is the official Consumer Credit Reporting Industry Web site and their free service can be used to:
   a) Opt-out of receiving Firm Offers for five years by using the online option on their Web site.
   b) Opt-out of receiving Firm Offers permanently by mailing a Permanent Opt-Out Election form to them, which is available through their Web site.
   
   They ask you for your name, address, Social Security Number (SSN), and Date of Birth (DOB). The last two are not required and I recommend that you do not provide your SSN, DOB, or your phone number. Just so you know, the security code displayed on the screen seems to be case-sensitive.  You will be provided a confirmation letter and a form to print out and mail to the address provided. Their service must be good because it’s even recommended by the Federal Trade Commission.
5. DirectMail.com is a member of DMA and manages a database of what they call National Do Not Mailing list. This sounds similar to the government’s Do Not Call list. However, DirectMail.com’s free service is useful if you want to get your name off of direct mailing lists, while the government’s Do Not Call list is useful in avoiding irritating phone calls from the telemarketers who try to sell you their products or services.
6. Acxiom is one of the largest data brokers in the United States with a database of almost 200 million people and needless to say they know a whole lot about consumers in this country. They have a Web site called AboutTheData.com where you can create an account and find out what type of information the marketers have about you. Acxiom’s service is free to the public. You can see the data that Acxiom has about you and also the data Acxiom’s trusted providers (other marketers) have about you. At least they are being transparent and have a system in place to help you opt-out of their mailing list. As soon as you sign up, you can go to this Opt-Out page and tell them to remove your mailing addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses from Acxiom’s marketing data products. You will receive a confirmation email with a link to go to their site and get a reference number. You can call them at (877) 774-2094 or (501) 342-3122 via phone. They also have a a Consumer Care Advocate email (consumeradvo@acxiom.com) in case you need help via email.
7. EcoCycle.org has some good, free advice on their Web site on how to get rid of unwanted phone books, catalogs, promotional products, and credit card solicitations.
8. Valpak is name that you are likely to be familiar with.  If you want to remove your address from the Valpak blue envelope mailing list, simply go to their Web site and and send them your address exactly as it appears on the mailing label. Valpak service is free of charge.
   
9. If you want to stop unwanted phone calls on your smartphone, try the free HiYa app. HiYa is a Seattle-based company founded by a very successful entrepreneur and Stanford graduate Alex Algard. The app provides caller profile information to consumers, which is essentially a spam detection and reporting service. It’s great at identifying fraudulent calls and you can easily block unwanted calls. The apps is easy to use and I find it incredibly useful. It’s one of those rare apps that doesn’t want 100% access to every single thing on your phone and is actually interested in protecting your privacy. HiYa has partnered with 100+ companies around the world, including AT&T, Samsung, and T-Mobile in the United States to offer its spam protection to their customers. It has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, The Seattle Times, GeekWire, TechCrunch, Forbes, NBC, CBS, etc. It has about 5.3 billion monthly active users in 196 countries. The best things about the HiYa app are:
   – It’s free.
   – Has no ads.
   – Doesn’t require you to share your contacts with the app.
   – It really cares about your privacy and doesn’t sell your personal data to third parties, doesn’t use it to market you, and doesn’t let your personal data leave your phone.
   
10. Try the PaperKarma app on your mobile device to unsubscribe from the distributor’s list. You simply take a snapshot of the mailer from your smartphone, click send and you are unsubscribed. PaperKarma is also a Seattle-based company and was founded by two guys who were fed up with junk mail. This app has been featured in The New York Times, ABC, CBS, NBC, PC Magazine, GeekWire, Seattle Business, c|net, etc. PaperKarma costs $1.99/month or $19.99/year. I’ve never felt the need to use this app, but they claim that they can stop the following:
    – Magazines
    – Catalogs
    – Coupon Books
    – Fliers
    – Credit Card Offers
    – White and Yellow Pages
    

The above list should be really helpful in stopping junk mail and calls from telemarketers and also finding out what some of the marketers know about you. You just have to be patient and wait for about a month to see results. I used a couple of these services over a decade ago and I’ve hardly received any junk mail or catalogs ever since.

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