Review marketing mail after an extended fraud alert

An extended fraud alert includes five years off the credit bureaus’ marketing lists unless you ask otherwise. That does not cover a company’s own customer list or every other advertising source. If a credit or insurance offer arrives, identify how it was selected before treating it as a problem with the alert.

By Junk Mail Magic. Updated October 2, 2026.

Sort the letter before you reply

Record the sender, date and printed addressee in private notes. Keep the original letter; do not copy identity documents or an SSN into a marketing worksheet.
Note whether the sender says the offer is based on credit-bureau information. Having an existing account with that company does not answer that question by itself.
Read the letter for any statement that it was based on information in your credit report. If you can't tell, don't guess. Ask the sender.
Find the sender's contact details on your own, for example from a statement you already hold or the company's own site that you typed in yourself. Ask whether the offer was prescreened, and ask them to stop marketing mail to the name and address you recorded.
If the letter suggests someone else is using your information, such as an account you never opened, use the FTC's identity theft routes instead of a marketing request.

Which alert you have matters

The FTC describes two alerts with different marketing periods. An extended fraud alert includes five years off bureau marketing lists. An active duty alert includes two years. If you placed an active duty alert some time ago, its marketing period may have ended even though you remember setting it. Check which alert you placed and when before you decide the offer should not have arrived.

The official prescreen opt-out is a separate service with five-year and permanent options. You can use it independently of any alert, and opting out of prescreened offers does not stop you from applying for credit.

Sample request to the sender

Example for your own use. Replace the bracketed details and review what you share.

Re: Marketing mail to [name as printed] at [mailing address] I received an offer from you dated or received on [date]. Please tell me whether this offer was prescreened using credit bureau information. Please also stop sending marketing mail to this name and address. If I have an existing account with you, this request covers only marketing, not account notices. Contact me by: [email or mailing address]

Choose the route for this one letter

If the offer came from the company’s own marketing list, use the direct request below. If it appears covered by a current bureau-list suppression, raise that specific question through the official route. Signs of an account you never opened call for the FTC’s identity-theft process.

Official sources

Handle bank promotions after prescreen opt-out Choose five-year or permanent prescreen opt-out Reach the prescreen opt-out without using a mailer QR code Do you need an SSN to opt out of prescreened offers?Credit-offer controls All practical mail guides

Choose the route that matches the mailing

Use the official route described in this guide for this kind of mail. For a separate ordinary advertisement, Junk Mail Magic can help prepare a sender-specific removal request.

Compare removal routes