PIN based security

Until recently USPS website security has been based on your Certificate number and your ZIP code. While this was adequate for securing information of interest only to USPS members, it was not sufficiently robust to safeguard members' personal information.

Beginning April 1st 2009, a unique 8 character PIN code was created for each USPS member. Going forward, security will be based on your Certificate number and PIN code. The PIN code now appears on your membership renewal notice. By the end of the dues year when all dues invoices will have been mailed, everyone will have been notified. At that time we will have fully transitioned from Certificate/ZIP code to Certificate/PIN security.

Although we will continue to support login by Certificate/ZIP code during this transition period, it is in your best security interest to move to PIN based security as soon as possible.

With the new security mechanism, it will be possible to support a variety of new services. Watch for announcements of these in the future.

To activate your PIN based security, you must first select a security question and provide the answer. Once you have done this, you will be converted from a ZIP based logon to the more robust PIN based logon. This will prevent someone, other than you, from logging on using your Certificate/ZIP code and potentially compromising your personal information.

If the following procedures seem complicated, they are so by design. In order to protect someone's personal information we must ascertain their identity before allowing them to change or request their PIN or Security Question.

Once you are on PIN based security, you may do any of the following:

• Change your security question and answer.
• Change your PIN to one of your choosing.
• Request your PIN should you forget it by answering your security question. The PIN will be sent to your email address in the national membership records.
• Request your security question by entering your Certificate number if you forget both your security question and PIN. The security question will be sent to the email address in your national membership record.

To activate PIN security, use the following procedure to select a security question:

• If you are not logged on to the USPS Server
  1. Access the Information center http://www.usps.org/national/tools
  2. Click on the link "Logon as a USPS member" in the left hand column under the "Other Tools" heading.
  3. Then logon using either your ZIP code or PIN
• Select your Question and Answer
  1. Access the Information center http://www.usps.org/national/tools
  2. Click on the link "Manage your Security Information" in the left hand column under the "Membership Information" heading.
  3. Click on Add a Question, select a question, and click Continue
  4. Enter your answer to the question and click Continue
• Note: Record your Question, Answer, and PIN in a safe place

At this time all USPS members have been assigned a PIN. If you have not yet received your dues renewal notice or have misplaced it and want to use Certificate/PIN security:

• Logon using your Certificate/ZIP code as above
• Select a security question and answer as above
• Click on the link "Logoff" in the left hand column under the "Other Tools" heading.
• Click on the link "Manage your Security Information" in the left hand column under the "Membership Information" heading.
• Request that you be emailed your PIN.
  1. Click on I know my security question
  2. Select your security question
  3. Click Continue
  4. Answer the question
  5. Click Continue
• Your PIN will be emailed to the email address in your membership record

If you forget your PIN and cannot log onto the USPS website, follow this procedure:

• When you get the logon failure notice, click on the "ReSubmit" button
• Click on the link for the "Security Information" pages.
• Enter your certificate number
• If you do not remember your security question
  1. Click on I don't know my security question
  2. Click Continue
  3. Your Security Question will be emailed to the email address in your national membership record
• If you know your security question
  1. Click on I know my security question
  2. Select your security question
  3. Click Continue
  4. Enter the answer to your security question
  5. Click Continue
• Your PIN will be emailed to the email address in your national membership record

One last important note: If you do not have a valid email address in your membership/biographical information profile on the national database, you will not be able to receive the email messages concerning security questions or PINs mentioned above.

To change your email address, contact your squadron roster chairperson to update your email address. If you do not know your roster chairperson, you can use the "Manage your own Profile" link under "Membership Information" on the Information Center page, www.usps.org/natonal/tools. Your email address change and other information changes will be forwarded to someone in your squadron who will be able to make the updates to the national database.