What a great idea to prominently post the Emergency Numbers on the front doors of the Bitterlake, Washington post office. The only number that works is 911. I had occassion to call the Postal Inspectors early one morning. Tried (206) 442-6300. Fast busy. Tried later in the morning. Fast busy. Tried after that. Fast busy. And another time. Fast busy.
Conclusion: If the USPS and the Postal Inspectors are too lazy to put up a working phone number, they don’t care about our mail.
The night I called to activate my new American Express card I was asked this question to verify my identity: “Name a relative over the age of 18.” I provided my father’s name. “Sorry, that name is not on the list.” Huh?
So much for identify verification when they have incorrect information.
Another security breach in my mind is attaching a phone number to the account that I never provided. I got this message: “I see that the phone number you are calling from matches your account.” Wrong. Turns out that American Express will collect phone numbers on you without your knowledge and associate them with your account. This certainly is not secure because it is an action behind the customer’s back.
There can be no security without accuracy.