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Disclosing ZIP codes allows "people to track their purchases. It creates a profile and that information can be shared with other companies and that's dangerous to have that information in one area," says lawyer Gene J. Stonebarger, whose lawsuit triggered the ruling.

But ZIP codes are not created randomly. There is an order and a structure to this mail system.As you type each successive digit of a ZIP code and see what regions of the United States it describes. For example, if you're typing in 64110 (Kansas City), you can see what parts of the United States begin with '6'.

With a name and address, a thief can change your address via U.S. Postal Service and redirect mail to their address of choice, Velasquez says. With access to your financial mail, the thief may intercept bank statements and credit card offers or bills, then order new checks and credit cards.

Alone, your ZIP code might not be of much value all by itself, but criminals will take that information and post it on underground sites where they buy, sell and trade bunches of personal information. From those sites, criminals can purchase enough of your personal information to use it for fraud.

Sorting ZIP CodesSelect the column (or cells) you want Excel to treat as text.Choose the Cells option from the Format menu. Excel displays the Format Cells dialog box.Make sure the Number tab is selected. (See Figure 1.)In the list of available formats, choose Text.Click on OK.

Use the "0"# format when you want to display one leading zero. When you use this format, the numbers that you type and the numbers that Microsoft Excel displays are listed in the following table. Example 2: Use the "000"# format when you want to display three leading zeros.

United States ZIP codes are five numerical digits long. ZIP+4 codes, also known as add-on or plus-four codes, include four additional digits that identify a geographic segment within a ZIP code delivery area.The second and third digits represent a region in that group, such as a large city.