The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has announced plans to provide its law enforcement branch with access to its vast trove of customer data, raising concerns among privacy activists about the organization’s expanding surveillance powers. The USPS came under scrutiny last year when it was revealed that its law enforcement arm, U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), was monitoring both left- and right-wing protest groups on social media. Multiple non-profit organizations sued the USPS, seeking internal records about its surveillance program and questioning the legality of such activities. Those lawsuits haven’t stopped the USPS from seeking additional surveillance powers. On Dec. 17, the USPS announced that it intended to provide customer data to the USPIS investigators. “USPIS will collect and aggregate eight data elements—Name, Address, 11-Digit Delivery Point ZIP Code (ZIP 11), Phone Number, Email Address, Tracking Number, IP Address, and Moniker,” the Postal Service said. According to the USPS, the influx of …