Answers to common questions

Unsolicited mail can typically be divided into two categories:

• mail sent using a customer list
• mail that is carpet-bombed across zip codes.

PaperKarma is effective with the former, but no one can do anything about the latter case. This is actually a product of the USPS called Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM). We need legislation to get rid of it.

PaperKarma handles most magazines, catalogs, credit card offers, yellow pages, etc. very well.

Coupons from local grocery stores or the local pizza chain don’t work as well – though we’ve seen exceptions.

Even when we can’t contact the company automatically, we’ll still locate their contact information in case you decide to contact them yourself.

PaperKarma works on most junk mail addressed to a specific recipient.

We contact any company or organization that maintains a direct mail database and they in turn search for a match using using your submitted name and address details.

Smaller entities will delete you from their database while larger ones will add you to a direct mail suppression list, which is used to screen all campaigns and scrub you from the final lists sent to mail production and distribution.

We have established working relationships with thousands of mailers across the US and can help you stop direct mail from:

• Associations
• Catalogs
• Charities
• Coupon offers
• Credit offers
• Direct marketers
• Insurance offers
• Local mailers
• Magazines
• National mailers

There are certain types of mail PaperKarma will not stop, unfortunately. These include:

• Account, admin & billing related mails from companies you transacted with
• Ballot issue, election campaign & vote related postcards
• Every Door Direct Mail (a USPS product that “carpet bombs” a zip code with junk mail)
• Free Standing Inserts
• Legally required notices
• USPS product offers

We process most requests within 24 hours. Some requests are processed in “batches” and sent to certain mailers 1x per month.

Once your request has been processed, it can take 8-12 weeks to see the mail completely stop.

This is because most mailers pre-print and distribute an additional 1-3 “waves” of their campaign upfront, to save on printing and distribution costs.

This “lag” time is typical of most mailers, and is the same if you opt-out of a mailer by contacting them yourself.

PaperKarma earns revenue to support its operations directly from users that purchase a monthly or yearly plan to access the service.

PaperKarma keeps all user data private and is not supported by advertising models or by selling user data.

PaperKarma is a convenient way to speed up opt-out requests and works with thousands of verified mailers. We save you the time and hassle of researching, emailing and calling each individual mailer. On average, Americans will spend about 8 months of their entire life dealing with junk mail!

The service is effective in getting rid of ~90% of junk mail, with visible results starting within 3-4 months of subscribing.

Chronic junk mail problems can take a year or more to resolve, as some mailers are active only in a certain season (e.g. back-to-school, holiday catalog, etc.). If you are unfortunate enough to have donated to a charity which has sold your personal information to other non-profits, getting off all the lists can take some time.

Ultimately the onus is on the mailers to honor your opt-out requests and add your submitted name /address to a suppression list.

If we are not successful in significantly reducing your junk mail problem, simply reach out to us to request a refund.

While we cannot guarantee the actions and compliance of each and every third-party mailer with each submission, we are confident in our solution to reduce junk mail and don’t wish to charge you if we haven’t helped your specific case.

No!

Using PaperKarma will not stop or interfere with receiving bills, statements, tax documents or other important account and transaction related mail.

Unfortunately, no. PaperKarma does not work outside of the USA.

PaperKarma only works for mailers in the 50 United States. We do not currently support Puerto Rico or other US territories.

If you would like us to add support for your country or territory, please let us know!

We will be expanding beyond the USA and your vote will help us prioritize next releases.

Unfortunately, no.

PaperKarma requires an Android or iOS device to access the service, which entails taking a picture from within the app (or selecting from your image gallery) and submitting the photo for image recognition of the mailer.

These photos also serve as proof you actually received the junk mail at your address, which is required by certain mailers in order to remove you from their database or add you to a suppression list.

Please note, PaperKarma is optimized for smartphones but is also functional across a wide array of tablet devices.

Tap the green camera button (our “karma chameleon”) and:

1. Take a photo of the mailer name, logo, or return address — or tap Choose to select a photo from your gallery instead.
2. Verify the correct mailer was identified (or edit it).
3. Swipe through your saved address cards and select the name and address you want the mailer to stop sending to.
4. Tap Unsubscribe.

That’s it.

To enable gallery uploads:

• iOS: tap the green camera button → Choose → allow photo gallery access when prompted.
• Android: Profile (smiley icon) → Settings → toggle on Offer option to use photo from gallery. Then tap the camera button on the home screen and pick Gallery from the prompt.

Archiving and deleting are two different ways to clear a request from your active list — used for different situations.

Archive “Success” requests to keep your active list focused on what’s still in progress. The request stays in our system; you’re just hiding it from the main view.

Delete “Pending” or “Failed” requests when you no longer want them processed. Deleting stops further work on the request.

How to archive or delete:

• Android: long press on the request.
• iOS: swipe left on the request.

PaperKarma can not stop EDDM (Every Door Direct Mail) which “carpet bombs” a zip code with junk mail. Additionally, there are several other types of junk mailers Paperkarma can not stop.

Here’s how you can recognize a mailer we don’t support:

• Postage stamp includes a code that says “EDDM”
• Mail is not addressed to any named individual or family and is only addressed to a generic catch-all, e.g. “Current Resident”, “To our Neighbors At” or similar.(To be clear, if the mail is addressed to an individual and also to “Or Current Resident”, we can handle it).
• Mail does not include ANY recipient whatsoever (e.g. a Free Standing Insert like a local grocery store flyer)
• Mail is a political postcard for a ballot issue or candidate. The good news here is that while annoying, such postcards dry up instantly after a short period of intensity prior to the vote /election.

While the above situations should guide you as a rule of thumb, there are certain, notable exceptions we have had success with, including:

• Money Mailer
• Retail Me Not (formerly Redplum)
• Valpak

Subscribers to our Yearly Plan can add mailers to our database. Here’s how:

1. Snap a picture of the mailer logo or return address as you would for any mailer
2. Allow the recognition process to complete (and provide a misidentified mailer or no result)
3. Tap the result and start typing the correct mailer name in the search bar
4. Press the green “Use this Mailer” button for your new, unique submission

Our team will research this mailer, determine the appropriate opt-out technique and add it to the database as we submit your request.

Check first if the contents of the envelope possibly contain a business name or address.

If so, simply take a picture of this!

However, if the mail doesn’t contain ANY business name, logo or address, our technology will not be able to recognize the source and we won’t be able to submit an opt-out request on your behalf.

Take a clear, close-up photo of the mailer’s name, logo, or return address. PaperKarma uses image recognition to identify the sender — focusing on those elements gets the best results. The photo also serves as evidence that you received the physical mail, in case the mailer needs to verify your opt-out request.

Tips for better recognition:

• Avoid blurry or low-light photos.
• Skip the marketing copy and large body text — they reduce recognition accuracy.
• Crop to the sender info if the piece is large.

If the photo isn’t recognized correctly, tap the result and choose from the top 10 closest matches — the right one is usually one tap away. If your mailer isn’t in the dropdown, search for it by name. Our database has over 100,000 of the most common senders, so you’ll likely find a match.

Congratulations, you have submitted a request for a mailer we work with!

We have successfully processed and sent your opt-out request using the channel specified by the mailer.

Yes — you can add as many name and address combinations as you need. Some common reasons to add multiple: a spouse or family member at the same address, multiple residences (home, vacation, business), or different name spellings that mailers might use for the same person.

Add or edit them from Profile (smiley icon) → Addresses → Add new Address.

Yes!

PaperKarma works best when you submit the exact name and address used by the mailer.

After all, they are searching for a match in their database when adding you to a suppression list.

To add an address: Profile (smiley icon) → Addresses → tap Add new Address. You can also add one during a photo submission — when prompted to pick a name and address, tap Add a new address or select from full list, then New.

To edit or remove an address: Profile → Addresses → tap the address → Edit to change details or remove it.

Following your free trial, a PaperKarma subscription is required for continued access to the service.

There are currently three plans available:

1. Monthly Plan (Unlimited Unsubscribes): $3.99 /mo
2. 6-Month Plan (Unlimited Unsubscribes): $15.99 /6 months
3. Yearly Plan (Unlimited Unsubscribes):     $24.99 /yr

How do I know which plan is right for me?

Monthly plans offer a convenient way to get rid of individual mailers and light junk mail problems.

6-Month and Yearly plans offer better value. We recommend these plans for stopping a wide variety of mailers over several (or all) possible seasonal campaigns.

Additionally, with these longer plans you can add new mailers to our database (great for stopping smaller local mailers). We will research them and submit your opt-out request for you.

Subscriptions may purchased from PaperKarma or within your app (in-app purchases).

In-app subscription options are technically sold and managed via the Google Play and Apple App Stores, respectively. Here’s how to purchase:

Android

Navigate to in-app subscription icon (credit card icon) > select a plan

Apple iOS

Navigate to in-app subscription icon (credit card icon) > select a plan

There is a specific way to cancel your subscription, depending on where you purchased it.

How to cancel an Apple App Store subscription (in-app purchase):

1. On your iPhone go to Settings > [your name] > iTunes & App Store.
2. Tap your Apple ID at the top of the screen.
3. Tap View Apple ID. You might need to sign in or use Touch /Face ID.
4. Scroll down and tap Subscriptions to manage or cancel your subscription
   

How to cancel a Google Play subscription (in-app purchase):

1. Open the Google Play app on your device
2. Press the “hamburger” settings icon (3 bars) at the top left (it’s often in the search bar)
3. Scroll to “Account”
4. Tap on “Subscriptions” to manage or cancel your subscription

Did you purchase elsewhere, or need more assistance?

Reach out to us at human@paperkarma.com!

This is an easily resolved issue common to Apple’s standard in-app subscriptions.

If you purposefully log out of the app, or if Apple logs you out during a software or Operating System update, you will be required to “Restore” your subscription.

Navigate to in-app subscription icon (credit cards icon) > press “Restore Previous Purchase”.

Our whole mission is to reduce unwanted junk mail.

We will not sell or rent your information to anyone – ever. Period.

Your information is used only for the purpose of unsubscribing you. Read more in our Privacy Policy.

Your data is stored on Amazon Web Services (AWS) infrastructure — the same cloud provider used by major banks, healthcare systems, and government agencies. We use AWS’s standard security controls, including encryption at rest for stored data.

All connections between your device and our servers use TLS encryption (the same standard banks and online retailers use to protect transactions).

For specifics on what we collect, how it’s used, and your rights, see our privacy policy.

We try to ask for as little personal information as possible.

However certain companies (e.g. many Yellow Pages providers) require your phone number in order to unsubscribe you.

No. Full stop.

We respect your privacy and keep it private.

We detest spam advertising in all forms, physical paper and digital, which is why we have opted for a SaaS subscription revenue model and not a business model based on selling your data to advertisers.

We do not provide your actual email to mailers, ever.

In the cases where we submit your opt-out request to a mailer via email, we proxy your email. This means we send the request via a non-identifying system email.

Any mailer response received by our system is routed and sent back to your original email address.

In certain limited cases we do provide your phone number to a mailer within an opt-out request. We only do this when it is a mailer requirement to opt-out of direct paper mail.

We also only provide your phone number to verified mailers that commit via their own privacy policies not to resell this data point.

We’re sorry to see you go 🙁

Please reach out to human@paperkarma.com and we will comply with your request.

Deleting your account is permanent and can not be reversed. All personal data and in-app activity data will be purged from our system. Your email will be added to our “do not email” suppression list.

Any pending requests will also be cancelled and will not be processed.

Please note, requesting account deletion or simply deleting the app from your device will NOT stop recurring subscriptions purchased in the App store or Google Play.  These stores do not provide us with any access or ability to manage your subscriptions.

Here’s how to cancel your subscription.

Requests are marked as “pending” for one of three reasons:

1. We work with many mailers by sending a “batch” of opt-out requests 1x per month. Your request will transition to a “success” state once our systems send the batch out.
2. The mailer has changed it’s protocol for accepting opt-out requests (e.g. an employee change, or a new phone number or email address) and we are working with the mailer to correct the information in our system.
3. You have submitted a request for a small, local mailer that is not in our system or for which we have not yet identified a verified method for sending opt-out requests.

PaperKarma is constantly reaching out to “pending” mailers and updating our system and database, such that you can expect most pending requests to transition to “success.”

Please note that unless you request the deletion of your account, we will continue to process pending requests for you even if you pause or terminate your subscription in the meantime.

Requests don’t fail often, but when they do, 99% of the time it’s because we can’t identify the mailer from your photo submission. Please try to take a clearer, close-up picture of the mailer name, logo or return address.

1% of the time a failure is attributable to a submission for a known “bad actor” that refuses to honor opt-out requests.

Don’t submit a duplicate request — it won’t help. Once a request is processed, you’re on the mailer’s suppression list, and resubmitting doesn’t change that.

Instead, if you’re still receiving mail 8–12 weeks after a successful opt-out, let us know in the app:

1. Tap the request to open its detail card.
2. Tap NO to the question “Is this mailer listening?”

We’ll contact the company to troubleshoot and confirm your contact preferences are up to date.

Contact us anytime for technical issues or account questions at helpdesk@paperkarma.com!

You can also contact us within your Android or iOS app via in-app messaging.

Here’s how:

Navigate to Profile (smiley icon) > Support > In-app Support and write your message in the in-app messenger.

Mistakes happen! If you want to cancel an opt-out request to a publication or junk mailer, please contact us.

If less than 24 hours have passed, we may be able to cancel the request and remove it from our sending queue.

Otherwise, we suggest you contact the mailer’s customer support and notify them you wish to be re-added to their mailing list.

Rest assured, PaperKarma will NEVER stop important account, billing, legal or membership mails from reaching you. Only direct marketing offers and junk mail!