81 FR 58542 - Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

POSTAL SERVICE

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 165 (August 25, 2016)

The United States Postal Service[supreg] (Postal Service) is proposing to establish a new Customer Privacy Act System of Records (SOR) to support the Informed Delivery<SUP>TM</SUP> notification service.

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 165 (Thursday, August 25, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58542-58544]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-20189]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

POSTAL SERVICE


Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

AGENCY: Postal Service[supreg].

ACTION: Notice of establishment of new system of records.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The United States Postal Service[supreg] (Postal Service) is 
proposing to establish a new Customer Privacy Act System of Records 
(SOR) to support the Informed DeliveryTM notification 
service.

DATES: This system will become effective without further notice on 
September 26, 2016 unless, in response to comments received on or 
before that date, the Postal Service makes any substantive change to 
the purpose or routine uses set forth, or to expand the availability of 
information in this system, as described in this notice. If the Postal 
Service determines that certain portions of this SOR should not be 
implemented, or that implementation of certain portions should be 
postponed in light of comments received, the Postal Service may choose 
to implement the remaining portions of the SOR on the stated effective 
date, and will provide notice of that action.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed or delivered to the Privacy and 
Records Office, United States Postal Service, 475 L'Enfant Plaza SW., 
Room 1P830, Washington, DC 20260-0004. Copies of all written comments 
will be available at this address for public inspection and 
photocopying between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Janine Castorina, Chief Privacy 
Officer/A, Privacy and Records Office, 202-268-3089 or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is in accordance with the 
Privacy Act requirement that agencies publish their systems of records 
in the Federal Register when there is a revision, change, or addition, 
or when the agency establishes a new system of records. The Postal 
Service is establishing a new system of records to support an expansion 
of its Informed DeliveryTM notification service.

I. Background

    Informed DeliveryTM is a digital service that allows 
enrolled users to receive an email notification that contains grayscale 
images of the outside of their letter-sized mailpieces processed by 
USPS automation equipment prior to delivery. This service is offered at 
no cost to the consumer. Informed DeliveryTM is currently 
available in areas of New York, Connecticut, and Northern Virginia 
(NoVa). The Postal Service intends to expand this service to the 
Capital Region (Washington, DC, Baltimore, and Richmond) in September 
2016, with national expansion planned for 2017. The establishment of 
this new USPS Privacy Act System of Records is intended to support this 
expansion.

II. Rationale for Changes to USPS Privacy Act Systems of Records

Expansion and User Acquisition Strategy

    Informed DeliveryTM is making mail a more valuable and 
effective communication channel for consumers, increasing the relevancy 
of physical mail in today's highly digital environment. Informed 
DeliveryTM offers residential customers the convenience of 
knowing what is in their mailbox from anywhere, even while traveling. 
Providing advance notice of mail delivery also allows consumers to take 
action before important pieces reach their mailbox, revolutionizing the 
customer experience with mail. In some cases, email notifications with 
mailpiece images will include interactive content, such as ``ride-
along'' images or related links from the business mailer. Lastly, users 
will have access to an online dashboard, which will display their 
mailpiece images from the previous six days.
    Currently, there are over 75,000 Informed DeliveryTM 
users in areas of Northern Virginia, New York, and Connecticut. 
According to USPS data, 90 percent of users surveyed in Northern 
Virginia have said they would recommend Informed DeliveryTM 
to friends or family, and 97 percent of those surveyed in New York 
would likely continue using the service. In light of the positive 
feedback that the Postal Service has received from Informed 
DeliveryTM users, the Postal Service intends to expand the 
Informed DeliveryTM notification service to the Washington, 
DC, Baltimore, and Richmond metropolitan areas in September 2016, with 
national expansion planned for 2017. To achieve this goal, the Postal 
Service has developed a comprehensive user acquisition strategy that 
includes a direct mail referral campaign, email campaigns sent to My 
USPS and USPS.com users, and promotion at retail locations. For the 
referral campaign, USPS will send a mailpiece to current Informed 
DeliveryTM users with the request that they send the 
provided tear-off cards to friends and family who may be interested in 
the service. As part of the user acquisition strategy, the Postal 
Service will be collecting personal information from internal and 
external sources, as identified below.
    Informed DeliveryTM is currently supported by two 
Privacy Act Systems of Records, USPS 810.100, www.usps.com Registration 
and USPS 820.200, Mail Management and Tracking Activity. The Postal 
Service has determined that a new system of

[[Page 58543]]

records should be established to support the planned expansion of the 
service and to promote transparency with regard to its collection and 
use of customer information.

Purposes and Disclosures

    USPS is using customer information to link physical mail with 
digital content in order to provide consumers with a convenient, 
innovative, and relevant way to access their mailpieces. Specifically, 
customer information will be used to support the Informed 
DeliveryTM notification service, providing users with a 
daily email notification containing images of their letter-sized 
mailpieces that will be arriving in their mailbox soon. Additionally, 
this information will help USPS maintain up-to-date user records and 
prevent fraudulent transactions, resulting in an improved customer 
experience. USPS will also collect data analytics from mail campaigns 
sent through Informed DeliveryTM in order to determine the 
outcomes of each campaign and help guide business decisions.

Security and Privacy

    The Postal Service takes the privacy of customers' mail very 
seriously and takes measures to ensure that all personal information is 
protected. To obtain the mail images, the Postal Service relies on 
existing automated mail processing equipment that is used every day to 
sort mail so that it can be delivered to the proper address. The 
scanned images that the Postal Service sends to enrolled users show 
only the exterior, front-side of letter-sized mail; the daily 
notification does not contain any information about the contents of the 
scanned mailpieces. The sanctity of the mail is also protected by the 
U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
    To enroll in Informed DeliveryTM, consumers must live in 
a ZIP Code where the service is active and have an eligible address, 
which can be confirmed through the Informed DeliveryTM Web 
site. Eligible consumers must then successfully complete one of several 
available verification processes. Once these steps are complete, a 
consumer will be able to access the Informed DeliveryTM 
notification service. During the sign-up and verification process, a 
consumer's household address is only collected and maintained to ensure 
that he or she only receives images of mail intended for delivery at 
the verified address. Other methods to ensure the security of the data 
are described below in the Safeguards section of the new Informed 
DeliveryTM SOR.

III. Description of the New System of Records

    Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(11), interested persons are invited to 
submit written data, views, or arguments on this proposal. A report of 
the establishment of this SOR has been sent to Congress and to the 
Office of Management and Budget for their evaluations. The Postal 
Service does not expect the establishment of this SOR to have any 
adverse effect on individual privacy rights. Accordingly, for the 
reasons stated above, the Postal Service proposes a new system of 
records as follows:
USPS 820.300

SYSTEM NAME:
    Informed DeliveryTM.

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    USPS Headquarters; Wilkes-Barre Solutions Center; and Eagan, MN.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
    1. Customers who are enrolled in Informed DeliveryTM 
notification service.
    2. Mailers that use Informed DeliveryTM notification 
service to enhance the value of the physical mail sent to customers.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
    1. Customer information: Name; customer ID(s); mailing (physical) 
address(es) and corresponding 11-digit delivery point ZIP Code; phone 
number(s); email address(es); text message number(s) and carrier.
    2. Customer account preferences: Individual customer preferences 
related to email and online communication participation level for USPS 
and marketing information.
    3. Customer feedback: Information submitted by customers related to 
Informed DeliveryTM notification service or any other Postal 
product or service.
    4. Subscription information: Date of customer sign-up for services 
through an opt-in process; date customer opts-out of services; nature 
of service provided.
    5. Data on mailpieces: Destination address of mailpiece; 
Intelligent Mail barcode (IMb); 11-digit delivery point ZIP Code; and 
delivery status; identification number assigned to equipment used to 
process mailpiece.
    6. Mail Images: Electronic files containing images of mail pieces 
captured during normal mail processing operations.
    7. User Data associated with 11-digit ZIP Codes: Information 
related to the user's interaction with Informed DeliveryTM 
email messages, including, but not limited to email open and click-
through rates, dates, times, and open rates appended to mailpiece 
images (user data is not associated with personally identifiable 
information).
    8. Data on Mailings: Intelligent Mail barcode (IMb) and its 
components including the Mailer Identifier (Mailer ID or MID), Service 
Type Identifier (STID) and Serial Number.

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
    39 U.S.C. 401, 403, and 404.

Purpose(s):
    1. To support the Informed DeliveryTM notification 
service which provides customers with electronic notification of 
physical mail that is intended for delivery at the customer's address.
    2. To provide daily email communication to consumers with images of 
the letter-sized mailpieces that they can expect to be delivered to 
their mailbox each day.
    3. To provide an enhanced customer experience and convenience for 
mail delivery services by linking physical mail to electronic content.
    4. To obtain and maintain current and up-to-date address and other 
contact information to assure accurate and reliable delivery and 
fulfillment of postal products, services, and other material.
    5. To determine the outcomes of marketing or advertising campaigns 
and to guide policy and business decisions through the use of 
analytics.
    6. To identify, prevent, or mitigate the effects of fraudulent 
transactions.
    7. To demonstrate the value of Informed DeliveryTM in 
enhancing the responsiveness to physical mail and to promote use of the 
mail by commercial mailers and other postal customers.

Routine Uses of Records Maintained in the System, Including Categories 
of Users and the Purposes of Such Uses
    Standard routine uses 1-7, 10 and 11 apply.

Policies and Practices for Storing, Retrieving, Accessing, Retaining, 
and Disposing of Records in the System
Storage
    Automated database and computer storage media.

Retrievability
    By customer email address, 11-Digit ZIP Code and/or the Mailer ID 
component of the Intelligent Mail Barcode.

Safeguards
    Computers and computer storage media are located in controlled-
access

[[Page 58544]]

areas under supervision of program personnel. Access to these areas is 
limited to authorized personnel, who must be identified with a badge. 
Access to records is limited to individuals whose official duties 
require such access. Contractors and licensees are subject to contract 
controls and unannounced on-site audits and inspections. Computers are 
protected by mechanical locks, card key systems, or other physical 
access control methods. The use of computer systems is regulated with 
installed security software, computer logon identifications, and 
operating system controls including access controls, terminal and 
transaction logging, and file management software. Online data 
transmissions are protected by encryption. Access is controlled by 
logon ID and password. Online data transmissions are protected by 
encryption.

Retention and Disposal
    Mailpiece images will be retained up to 7 days (mailpiece images 
are not associated with personally identifiable information). Records 
stored in the subscription database are retained until the customer 
cancels or opts-out of the service.
    User data is retained for 2 years, 11 months.
    Records existing on computer storage media are destroyed according 
to the applicable USPS media sanitization practice. Any records 
existing on paper will be destroyed by burning, pulping, or shredding.

System Manager(s) and Address
    Vice President, New Products and Innovation, United States Postal 
Service, 475 L'Enfant Plaza SW., Washington, DC 20260

Notification Procedure
    Customers wanting to know if information about them is maintained 
in this system of records must address inquiries in writing to the 
system manager. Inquiries must contain name, address, email and other 
identifying information.

Record Access Procedures
    Requests for access must be made in accordance with the 
Notification Procedure above and USPS Privacy Act regulations regarding 
access to records and verification of identity under 39 CFR 266.6.

Contesting Record Procedures
    See Notification Procedure and Record Access Procedures above.

Record Source Categories
    Individual customers who request Informed DeliveryTM 
notification service; USPS.com account holders; other USPS systems and 
applications including those that support online change of address, 
mail hold services, Premium Forwarding Service or PO Boxes Online; 
commercial entities, including commercial mailers or other Postal 
Service business partners and third-party mailing list providers.
* * * * *

Stanley F. Mires,
Attorney, Federal Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2016-20189 Filed 8-24-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7710-12-P