Don’t be a victim! U.S. Postal Service sees uptick in scams including fake stamps

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - From fake postage to porch pirates and phishing schemes, the U. S. Postal Service sees all of these activities increase during the holiday season according to U.S. Postal Inspector Alex Laumb.

Laumb, who is stationed in Alaska, said one of the most common scams involves an email or text message stating that a package can’t be delivered because the address needs to be confirmed. People are advised to click on a link to provide more information, but Laumb said, that’s something you definitely shouldn’t do.

“The U.S. Postal Service will never send you anything like that. We’re never going to send you a text message or an e-mail trying to get information from you or solicit a payment from you or anything like that,” he said.

Laumb said people can also take a close look at the address or text where the message is coming from.

“Something’s going to be fishy, something’s going to be wrong. There’s going to be misspellings on it, it’s going to have the wrong address, something like that. But for everybody’s knowledge, unless you’ve signed up for (the service) Informed Delivery or you’ve reached out to the Postal Service, we will not be actively emailing you about parcels in that manner.”

Laumb said a big problem they are seeing now involves fake postage. Sellers on the internet may advertise “Forever Stamps” or other postage at deep discounts, 50 to 70% off. Laumb said in almost every case, the stamps are fake.

“There’s a good chance that they’re not real stamps, so you’re going to get taken advantage of, and your package or your letter is not going to get where it’s intended to go,” he said. “It might get delayed, it might get returned to you at some point. It depends what kind of fake postage it is, but more importantly, you are not going to get the product or the service you’re trying to ask for.”

Stolen mail and stolen packages are another big concern, especially during the holidays. Laumb recommends being careful about what you leave in your mailbox, and if you have concerns, to take mail or parcels directly to the post office.

He said deliveries to your home should be retrieved as soon as possible, or make alternate arrangements, like having packages delivered to a neighbor or workplace.

“Be aware, pay attention to your porch, don’t leave things out longer than they need to do, that’s the best way to protect yourself.”

Laumb said catching thieves on camera can be helpful for investigators. He recommends people who have experienced stolen packages file a report with police as well as contact the postal inspector with that and other concerns by email at uspis.gov or by calling the national hotline which will be rerouted to Alaska at 877-876-2455.

Laumb said inspectors take reports of mail theft very seriously across the state and work closely with both local police and Alaska State Troopers.

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