Amazon has quietly expanded a new program over the past few months that it calls AMZL Photo on Delivery, where some of its delivery providers snap a photo of where they place your package. The photo is then included in the notice of delivery the shopper receives, letting them know when it has arrived and where to look for it.
Here's how Amazon describes AMZL Photo on Delivery on its website:
Amazon Logistics (AMZL) may take a photo on delivery when a package is left unattended. Capturing delivery photos is intended to help customers see that their package was safely delivered and where. The photo will focus on the placement of the package. If a photo on delivery is captured, it may show up when you track a package from Your Orders.
Accessing a delivery photo requires signing in with your user name and password on the Amazon website. Customer Service may look at delivery photos to troubleshoot what happened to a package if you contact us or report a problem with the photo. The photos may also be audited for quality purposes.
For orders shipped to an address marked confidential, such as a Wish List or Registry address, Amazon won’t post a delivery photo on the order in order to protect the privacy of the recipient.
Customers can choose opt out of AMZL Photo on Delivery.
"The Photo on Delivery program has existed for at least six months, but recently Amazon updated the delivery device and app used by delivery personnel in its Amazon Logistics delivery system — called Rabbit by drivers — so all Logistics drivers can take a photo," an Amazon spokesperson told USA Today. "This has made the program more visible to a broader geographic swath of Amazon customers nationwide. It's currently available at least in the Seattle, San Francisco and Northern Virginia metro areas and only comprises a small portion of U.S. deliveries."
The program is recapped in this video posted by USA Today:
