How to Opt Out of Amazon Delivery Photos
Amazon Help: Opt Out of Photo on Delivery
Amazon snaps delivery photos whenever they deliver packages at your doorstep. Drivers takes photo of your front door when they drop off packages to prove that it was delivered to the correct address. The photos are then posted to your Amazon account along with shipping tacking information. The delivery confirmation photos can be seen by going to any past order and looking at the tracking data. There you will see photos of your package at your own front door or wherever else the driver may have left your package. In my case they tend to leave packages on the chair near my front door, in front of the garage door, on the front lawn, and even sometimes in the mailbox!
Capturing delivery photos is intended to help customers see that their package was safely delivered and where. Amazon began the delivery photo service in May 2018. Drivers take quick photo to help track deliveries. SMS and map tracking are also available.
Delivery photos show up under the Orders section on your Amazon account. Go to any past order that has already been delivered. Select “track shipment.” The shipping checkpoints appear along with a photo if there is one. Do you find that photo creepy? I do! Amazon users can opt out of the photo delivery confirmations by shutting off the feature in their Amazon.com accounts.
Why Does Amazon Take Delivery Photos?
Delivery photos are only taken when Amazon Logistics (AMZL) delivers a package to an unattended location. Amazon Logistics is Amazon’s delivery service. The idea is to show customers that their order was delivered on time and to the correct location. The images themselves are tight shots of the product and not so much the surroundings.
For most of photos it is obvious that it’s at my house, but in a few shots, the image is too tight around the package to be sure. I have had not any problems with deliveries being swiped from my doorstep, so I decided to shut off the delivery photos because I find it weird. There are other methods of delivery conformation from Amazon customers including text messaging and map tracking.
The Amazon website states, “We may use delivery photos to verify delivery location, audit for quality purposes, or troubleshoot what happened to a package.” Which means that Amazon employees may see the photos to service your account if there is an issue. If you opt out of delivery photos, does that simply remove them from your view? Or does Amazon Logistics stop taking the photos completely? Update: I asked the delivery the next day after writing this artcile. Amazon delivery people take a photo on delivery no matter what. If yo opt out, they do not post it to your account, but the photo still exists!
Are Amazon Delivery Confirmation Photos Secure?
Amazon account holders need to sign into their accounts to see the delivery photos. So only those with your account login credentials can see the creepy photos. As long as no one hacks Amazon Web services, then I guess all our delivery pics are safe and sound.
For orders shipped to an address marked confidential, such as Wish List or bridal registry addresses, Amazon won’t post a delivery photo on the order to protect the privacy of the recipient.
How to Opt Out of Amazon Delivery Photos
You can stop Amazon Logistics from taking delivery photos by opting out of the service. To opt-out of delivery photos: From the website or app, go to any past order that has a delivery photo.
To opt-out of Amazon delivery photos:
- Go to any order with a delivery photo in Your Orders.
- Select Track package
- Select Don’t take delivery photos
About Map Tracking for Amazon
Customers can keep tabs on the progress of some in-transit packages on a live map in real time. If this feature is available for a shipment, it can be accessed by clicking Track Package from either the Orders section of your account or your Amazon Shipment Confirmation e-mail.
Track with SMS Messages
Alternatively, customers can sign up for Shipment Updates via Text messaging.
- Go to Your Account
- Under the Email alerts, messages, and ads section, click Shipment Updates via Text
NOTE: Shipment updates via text are available only for packages shipped from AMZL including Amazon Global.
Michelle writes about cyber security, data privacy focusing on social media privacy as well as how to protect your IoT devices. She has worked in internet technology for over 20 years and owns METRONY, LLC. Michelle earned a B.S. in Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Michelle published a guide to Cyber Security for Business Travelers
