Wire of Hope’s Prison Pen Pal Program provides many resources about prison correspondence, including tutorials to help you navigate through the different steps of the process of writing a prisoner online. You will find below the tutorials for the Prison Email System Securus Technologies.
• To write a prisoner online with Securus, you need to create an account on Securus Technologies. To begin, on the top right of the page, click “Sign in”.
• At the bottom of the page, click “Create an Account”. Fill out the form and submit your information. Simply follow the guided steps on the screen. If you are not a US, Canada, or Mexico resident, Securus Technologies might not allow you to register to their services or use your debit / credit card to buy virtual stamps. If this is your case, the services offered by Jmail might be a good alternative for you.
• Once your account is created, click “Launch” in the “eMessaging” section of your dashboard.
• In the eMessaging left menu, pick “Contacts” and click “Add Contact” on the right.
• Look for your prison penpal, either by entering their first and last names or their correctional ID number. Enter their state and facility. Note that you might have to pick the “DOC” or “Department of Corrections” as your facility if your penpal is housed in a state facility. Click “Search” and select your prison penpal in the list of results by clicking “Add Contact”.
• Once you have added the inmate, they should show in your contact list.
• Securus Technologies works with virtual stamps. If you want to email a prisoner, you will have to buy stamps. In the eMessaging left menu, pick “Total Stamps”.
• Stamps prices vary by state, but emails usually cost the same amount of stamps everywhere: 1 email costs 1 stamp, 1 attachment or prepaid reply for the inmate costs an additional stamp. Select the contact you want to send an email to and buy stamps for, then choose your stamp package. Scroll down and enter your billing and payment information by following the guided steps on the screen. Click “Next” when you are done.
• In the eMessaging left menu, pick “Compose” to start your email. At the top of the page, select your contact.
• Enter your subject and type your email. You also have the option to include a stamp for your prison penpal so they can reply to you at no cost (in case they have no stamps in their account for example). Click “Send” when you are done.
• A message will appear on the screen for you to confirm the amount of virtual stamps used before sending your email and agree to the company terms and conditions. Click “Confirm” if you are ready to send it.
• Your message has been sent! You can find it in the “Sent” folder of the eMessaging left menu.
• Allow a couple of days to one week for the mail room to process your email and forward it to your prison penpal (electronically and/or by printing out a copy). If this is your first time writing your prison penpal, don’t forget to include your mailing address in your email! Some inmates do not have the possibility to reply electronically.