Check postal choices before creating a baby registry

A checklist for account setup

1. Read the signup screens and privacy settings for wording about marketing, mail or sharing with partners. If you cannot find a setting, do not assume it exists.
2. Record registry visibility on its own line, including exactly what the retailer says that choice covers. Do not assume a visibility setting also controls postal marketing.
3. Record the postal marketing choice on a separate line. Note whether it says paper mail or only says marketing or email.
4. Record any partner-sharing option separately, including whether it covers affiliates or only named partners.
5. If a setting is missing or unclear, use the retailer's official contact page to ask whether a postal choice or sharing choice is available. Save the reply.

Why the settings should not be merged

Making a registry private may not change whether the retailer mails you its own promotions. An email preference may not control paper mail, and a paper preference may not control email. Read the exact wording instead of relying on a single toggle.

The adult who creates the account makes these choices for their own mail. A mail preference should not require a child's identity documents.

Keep the record where you can find it

Save the finished checklist with the account confirmation. When a catalog or offer arrives later, check whether its sender matches a setting you chose. If the mail conflicts with a choice you recorded, send the retailer a short note that quotes the setting and the date you recorded it.

Official source

• FTC: How To Stop Junk Mail