taler-merchant-demos

privacyaction.html (6256B)

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 <title>Protect Postal Privacy
 - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation</title>
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 <h2>Protect Postal Privacy</h2>
 
 <address class="byline">by Kathleen Ellis</address>
 
 <div class="comment">
 <p>The Free
 Software Foundation does not lead this campaign, but we support it by
 spreading the word and hope that you do too.</p>
 </div>
 
 <h3>Background</h3>
 <p>
 The United States Postal Service has submitted a rule to Congress
 proposing that all Commercial Mail Receiving Agencies (CMRAs) must,
 as of June 24, 1999, collect significant personal information from
 all clients using their services. This would certainly affect
 anonymous mail transactions, and could put millions of CMRA
 customers in danger.  Any CMRA or CMRA customer who refuses to
 comply with this regulation would effectively lose their right to
 receive mail.</p>
 <p>
 The proposed regulation (published in the Federal Register on March
 25, 1999) requires that CMRAs collect names, home addresses,
 telephone numbers, and photo ID information about each customer.  If
 the CMRA customer classifies themselves as a business, they must
 surrender the information on that box holder to anyone who asks for
 it.  CMRAs are widely used by survivors of domestic violence,
 undercover law enforcement officials, and stalking victims in order
 to conceal their locations and identities from people who could
 cause them harm.</p>
 <p>
 The USPS proposal was intended to help cut down on mail fraud, a
 practice that costs consumers millions of dollars every year.
 However, experts state that the Postal Service's proposal will not
 serve as a deterrent to criminals.  &ldquo;It will be a simple process
 for those with financial means to rent homes, apartments, office
 space, or the executive suites available in most major metropolitan
 area,&rdquo; says Postal Watch's website.</p>
 <p>
 Congressman Ron Paul has introduced House Joint Resolution 55, which
 would effectively revoke the Postal Service's new regulations
 regarding CMRAs, but the resolution needs your support in order to
 ensure that this insidious assault on consumer privacy is defeated.</p>
 
 <h3>What you can do</h3>
 
 <ol>
   <li>Contact your Representative and urge them to co-sponsor HJR 55.</li>
   <li>Write or call members of the House Appropriations Committee and
        inform them about this issue, and urge them to pass the
        resolution.</li>
   <li>Send written comments about this issue to the US Postal Service
        before July 9, 1999 to:
        <address>
        Manager, Administration and FOIA United States Postal Service
        <br />
        475 L'Enfant Plaza SW, Room 8141 Washington, DC  20260-5202
        </address></li>
 </ol>
 
 <h3>More information</h3>
 For further information, see the following web pages:
 
 <ul>
   <li>Privacy.org [in 2021: <a href="https://www.epic.org/">epic.org</a>]</li>
   <li><a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/106th-congress/house-joint-resolution/55">
        H.J.Res.55&mdash;106th Congress</a></li>
 </ul>
 </div>
 
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