USPS Advises New Yorkers To Not Use These During Holidays

This Fourth of July there is something that you should not be doing.

Officials with the United State Postal Service are urging residents in New York and across the country to stop using the Big Blue mailboxes during the Fourth of July holiday.

The reason why is the rise of identity theft and thieves are stealing mail from those mailboxes and using the mail to steal personal information.

USPS officials noted that the blue mailboxes are ok to use during normal business hours since mail personnel routinely check and collect the mail. They advise to not use those boxes on holidays and weekends when the mail will sit in the box for longer than 24 hours.

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According to masslive.com, the USPS is encouraging people to come into the post office to send their mail.

“The biggest variable enticing these criminals to steal are customers depositing mail into blue collection boxes after the last collection of the day or during Sundays and federal holidays. If customers simply used retail service or inside wall drop slots to send their U.S. Mail, instead of depositing it to sit outside overnight or through the weekend, blue collection boxes would not be as enticing after business hours to mail thieves for identity theft and check-washing schemes"

If you do see someone trying to get into one a mailbox outside of normal business hours you can contact your local police department or the postal inspectors at 877-876-2455.