Reach the prescreen opt-out without using a mailer QR code

Leave the QR code alone. On a device you trust, type consumer.ftc.gov into the browser and open the FTC page on prescreened offers for credit and insurance. That page points to the official opt-out service. You then reach it by a route you chose, instead of one printed by an unfamiliar sender.

By Junk Mail Magic. Updated October 2, 2026.

Get there by your own route

Type consumer.ftc.gov yourself and find the article on prescreened offers. Follow its link to the official opt-out service.
Check that the destination offers what the FTC describes: a five-year opt-out and a permanent opt-out. The permanent option requires you to return a signed election form.
Compare that with what the mailer said its code would do. If the mailer promised something different, or named a site that doesn't match, note the difference on the worksheet and don't scan the code.
Pick the five-year or permanent option on the official service, and enter only what its own form asks for.

Two destinations, two different requests

The official service covers firm offers built from participating credit-bureau lists. A company’s own customer-list advertising or another non-bureau source can remain outside that coverage. Having an account with the sender is not, by itself, the test. You can ask an identified company separately about its own promotional records.

Prescreen inquiries do not harm your credit score. Choosing the opt-out also does not prevent you from applying for credit later.

Navigation worksheet

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

Mailer sender: [name as printed] Date received: [date] What the mailer said its code does: [wording] Site named on mailer, if any: [domain] Route I used: typed consumer.ftc.gov, then followed the FTC link Did the destination match the FTC description? [yes / no, notes] Option chosen: [five-year / permanent] Signed form returned (permanent only): [date / pending]

If you chose permanent

For a permanent election, record the signed form as pending until you return it. For the five-year option, save the confirmation date. Keep those steps separate so a completed online session is not mistaken for a completed permanent election.

Official sources

Choose five-year or permanent prescreen opt-out Finish a permanent prescreen request you started online Do you need an SSN to opt out of prescreened offers?Treat a credit offer for a child as a verification task 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