Lock Up Zip Code Notice For Free

That five-digit zip code is one of the key items data brokers use to link a wealth of public records to what you buy. They can figure out whether you're getting married (or divorced), selling your home, smoke cigarettes, sending a kid off to college or about to have one.

Stores want your ZIP code because, combined with your name from your credit card, they can use it to find out other information about you from commercial databases, like your full mailing address. They may even sell the information to data brokers, who sell it to other marketers.

For example, with your name and address a thief could: Research public databases for further pieces of information about you. Get yet more personal information about you from online data brokers. Send you phishing attacks and scams by physical mail. Redirect your physical mail, essentially committing mail fraud.

So what do the extra numbers mean? These last 4 digits represent specific delivery routes within delivery areas. This extra detail means an even more precise matching to a more granular level. It could represent a handful of houses on one side of a street, or even a single building that receives a high volume of mail.

ZIP Codes? are an integral part of making sure your mailpiece is processed quickly and efficiently. Not having a ZIP Code? on your mail causes unnecessary delay because it will require manual look-up.

Alone, your ZIP code might not be of much value all by itself, but criminals will take that information and post it on underground sites where they buy, sell and trade bunches of personal information. From those sites, criminals can purchase enough of your personal information to use it for fraud.

Stores want your ZIP code because, combined with your name from your credit card, they can use it to find out other information about you from commercial databases, like your full mailing address. They may even sell the information to data brokers, who sell it to other marketers.

AVS is just one of several fraud management tools business owners can use to help safeguard against credit card fraud. In some cases, a merchant may ask for your ZIP code before you have selected your method of payment. The merchant could be gathering marketing data for their sales team.