Overview
- In brushing schemes, third-party sellers ship items to people who never ordered them to create fake verified-purchase reviews that inflate product ratings and sales.
- The surprise deliveries typically contain low-cost household goods or gadgets and use recipients’ real addresses to make the purchases look legitimate.
- Postal officials warn that the tactic can expose names, addresses and phone numbers, raising the risk of identity theft, compromised accounts and increased spam.
- Inspectors also report cases in which criminals have orders sent to a victim’s address and then steal the packages before residents can retrieve them.
- USPS urges recipients to file a report with the Postal Inspection Service, change passwords for email and financial accounts, avoid contacting senders and never scan package QR codes, with further guidance on its CyberSafe pages.