Columbia County Prison Emailing An Inmate

Columbia County Prison

Address:
721 Iron Street
Bloomsburg, PA 17815
Phone:
570-784-4815

Send an Email or Text to an Inmate in the Columbia County Prison

Sending an Email, Text or Secure Electronic Message to an Inmate

The Columbia County Prison provides a service which allows secure electronic messaging for their inmates.

The email service they use is called SecureMail.

SecureMail is not directly connected to the internet like normal email, but instead each correspondence is first intercepted by the jail's servers. This gives the staff an opportunity to review the messages before delivering them to both inmates and the people that the inmates are communicating with.

Electronic messages received by the inmates are read either on kiosks within the inmate's unit, or or on tablets provided by the third party service that oversees the program.

Allowing inmates access to email has many upsides:

• It is less expensive than regular mail.
• It allows for faster turnaround of communication.
• It allows the jail to monitor inmate communication in real time.
• Because the jail receives a portion of the revenue, it brings the jail revenue they wouldn't have otherwise.
• It is an inmate privilege that they don't want to have taken away, and thus can be used as a way to control behavior.
• It keeps unwanted contraband from entering the facility in the physical mail.

For a list of Frequently Asked Questions and Answers about inmate emailing and texting, scroll down for more information about it or call the jail at 570-784-4815.

Columbia County Prison - Emailing an Inmate

Columbia County Prison allows Secure Messaging using a third-party service call Access Corrections.

They are the same company that facilitate Secure Deposits and Securepaks, so if you are already registered with them, then you are already approved to send Secure Messages to your inmate.

Register/Log in here.

After Registering/Logging In:

1.     You choose Columbia County Prison.
2.    You Search for your inmate by typing in his last name. You can further narrow your search by adding his first name and/or Inmate ID.
3.    You add a credit or debit card.
4.    You buy a message plan (plans and prices vary), or buy credits. One credit costs $0.01.
5.    You select the option for your inmate to be able use the credits which you purchase, to message back to you... Or not.
6.    Columbia County Prison charges a fee for each message sent or received.

Important Things to Know

 - Access Corrections has an iphone app and an android app for using their services.
 - ALL of your correspondence will be monitored by the jail. 
 - Do NOT write anything you wouldn’t want repeated in court.
 - Rates vary and are always subject to change.
 - Inmates can write you back ONLY if you select that option.
 - You CAN send photos up to 32MB in file size. Subject to change.
 - You CAN have unlimited credits on your account but are limited in the amount of each credit purchase.
 - You may NOT type or send emoticons.
 - You may NOT copy and paste text. Type directly.
 - You may NOT type profanities, violence or characters not approved. 
 - Due to messages having to be reviewed first, allow up to five days for a message to be delivered.
 - You may NOT transfer credits to another email.

Phone: 866-345-1884

Email:  customerservice@accesscorrections.com
FAQ
Contact Page
iphone app
Android app

Register and Sign in Here to Email with an Inmate in the Columbia County Prison

Frequently Asked Questions about Inmate Email and Texting

Can inmates send and receive texts and emails?

How much does it cost for an inmate to use a text or email service?

Can inmates send and receive photos through their messaging system?

Can I send an inmate a link to a video to watch?

Can I send an inmate a video?

What device does an inmate use for texting and emailing?

What is the inmate text and email system used in the Columbia County Prison?

What are the companies that provide electronic messaging services to jails and prisons?

How do I fund the inmate’s messaging system?

How often can an inmate text and email?

Can inmates text or email any time of the day or night?

Can an inmate email or text inmates in other jails or prisons?

Can inmates send and receive texts and emails?

Almost all jails and prisons have adopted or are adopting a messaging system which allows inmates to communicate with their friends and family using an electronic messaging system. It’s neither email nor text, it’s something in between.

The inmate and their contacts do not use their regular email accounts or phone numbers, but account numbers that are set up with the company providing the service.
All communication goes through them. Think of them as a middleman.

Once a contact of the inmate is approved, like the approval process a visitor goes through, an account is set up, using a credit or debit card to fund the account. 

To start, the inmate’s contact can send a message that has a limit of so many characters, usually about one page of text. 

The message is then reviewed by a computer that scans the message for certain keywords or phrases that are not allowed, almost like a censoring service. If the machine scanner finds problems with the message it sends the message to the Columbia County Prison staff to review, and if they find no issues, will then forward it to the inmate’s account so that they can read it.

If there are problems with the message, it is possible the message will not be sent. The sender will be notified of the decision and will not get a refund.

Once the inmate receives the message, should the account holder have funded the account allowing replies, the inmate can respond with a similar length message.

How much does it cost for an inmate to use a text or email service?

The cost to use the electronic messaging service, which is like texting or emailing, costs between $0.50 and $1.00 per page; a page being about 500 characters.

Can inmates send and receive photos through their messaging system?

Photos can be sent by the inmate’s outside contact, but not by the inmate due to security concerns. There is an extra cost, usually about $0.50 for each photo attached. 

The photos must go through a security screening where nudity, violence and other things are checked before the photo can be delivered. If the photo is rejected, the sender will be notified, but no refund will be given.

The inmate does not have the ability to print out the photos that make it past the screening, but the photos will stay in their account so that they can view them at their leisure. 

Can I send an inmate a link to a video to watch?

No.  Because this is a closed system, the Columbia County Prison inmate has no access to the internet, thus the inmate will have no access to any links that you send them.

Can I send an inmate a video?

Yes, just as you can send text and photos, you can send a video message, or if not a message, then a video of your children or yourself. Every company has a limit on the length of the video, usually no more than one minute, and at a cost of approximately $2.00 to $3.00 per video.

The video will first be screened for any nudity, excessive vulgarity, violence, etc. If it is rejected on any of the grounds the sender will not be given a refund.

As with the policy of photos, the inmate cannot reciprocate. They cannot send videos of themselves or anything in jail.

What device does an inmate use for texting and emailing?

The jails that contract with the electronic messaging service is given a certain number of kiosks within each unit for inmate use. Inmates can log on as they might with a public computer terminal. 

In addition to the public terminal kiosks, inmates are given (or can rent) access to individual tablets like a bulky, almost indestructible ipad. These allow an inmate to use them to access your messages, photos and videos in a more private manner. 

Should the inmate damage the tablet, they will be responsible for replacing it. The money will be deducted from their commissary account.

What is the inmate text and email system used in the Columbia County Prison?

The electronic messaging system used by Columbia County Prison, if there is one, can be found at the top of this page. If there is no information about the ability to text or email with an inmate, it is possible that this facility has recently changed companies or does not have this service available. Call 570-784-4815 to confirm.

What are the companies that provide electronic messaging services to jails and prisons?

This is a list of all the companies in the United States that work with jails and prisons, providing text and email messaging between inmates and their friends and families:

Access Corrections
CIDNET
City Tele Coin
Correct Pay
Corrlinks
Ctel
Edevo
Express Account
Gettingout
GTL
Homewav
IC Solutions
Inmate Canteen
Inmate Sales
JailATM
J Pay
NCIC
Paytel
Pigeonly
Prodigy Sales
Reliance
Securus
Smart Communications
TBE
Visitel

How do I fund the inmate’s messaging system?

You fund the messaging service with credit and debit cards. All of them take Visa and MasterCard, most also take Discover, but only a few of them take America Express.

How often can an inmate text and email?

When available, there is no limit to the amount of texting and email that an inmate can have with their family and friends.

Can inmates text or email any time of the day or night?

If an inmate has their own tablet, then they can text any time of the day or night. However if they are limited to the use of a wall mounted kiosk terminal in their unit, they can only use it during the hours they are allowed off their bunks or out of their cells; usually 7:00AM to 10:00PM, excluding meals, head counts and shift changes.

Can an inmate email or text inmates in other jails or prisons?

No, inmates in jail are not allowed to communicate with inmates in other institutions. There is always a way to get around it, for example if one of the inmates has access to a phone with an internet connection, but this would be the only way.

Mail, Emailing and Texting an Inmate using TextBehind

TextBehind enables you to communicate with your incarcerated loved ones located inside the United States from anywhere in the world using text letters, kids' drawings, and custom greeting cards. Unlimited inmate reply letters are processed for electronic delivery to your smartphone and email at no extra charge.
The cost to send an electronic letter is approximately $1.00.

Here’s how it works for Columbia County Prison:
1.    All offender mail (paper and electronic) is addressed and delivered to TextBehind. Electronic mail is sent through the apps (iphone, Google Play). Paper mail is sent to the address below:
Inmate Name and Inmate Number
Columbia County Prison Pennsylvania (note: please do not abbreviate the name)
P.O. Box 247
Phoenix, MD 21131
2.    If it was sent via TextBehind's app (iphone, Google Play), TextBehind can process it within one business day.
3.    An additional step is involved in processing mail that is sent using the U.S. Postal Service. TextBehind will  use a scanner to make digital files of the contents of the mailing—including cards, photos or artwork.
4.    All digital files are then forwarded to the offender’s assigned prison.
5.    Columbia County Prison mailroom prints approved pages and delivers them to the inmate.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

• TextBehind does not deliver any mail to the inmate directly, nor do they guarantee delivery of your letters to the inmates by the courier, jail or prison staff. Once they process your mail and ship them out on your behalf, they are out of the loop entirely. However, at times they may offer to resend your letters under certain strict conditions as a courtesy. 
• Inmates do not receive any invites when you add them, and neither do they need to accept the use of TextBehind service. Once you add the inmate, you can create letters for them. 

Here’s what happens when TextBehind receives a letter from an inmate:

• Upon receiving, TextBehind staff open their letters, scan, and upload high-quality images to your TextBehind account as a complimentary service. You are not required to have any money or credits balance in your TextBehind account to receive inmate letters.
• Next, you will receive a text and email alert to notify you of any new incoming reply letters. At that time, you can log into the TextBehind website or mobile app and view letters in your CONTACTS >> Click on Conversation Icon. 

YOU NEED TO KNOW THIS...

• Inmates do require a stamp to send out their letters to TextBehind using Postal Service.
• The cash or credit balance from your TextBehind account will not be shared with inmates as a substitute for the stamps. 
• All letters printed and shipped by TextBehind nationwide to virtually any jail or prison facility are delivered to the jails/prisons by couriers such as the USPS or FedEx as their standard process.
• After the shipments, TextBehind has no control over the process.
• The delivery of your letters depends on couriers and prison staff taking necessary action on time.

IMPORTANT TextBehind LINKS:
Register / Log in with TextBehind
Contact TextBehind with Questions
Add an Inmate to your list of Contacts
TextBehind Volume Discount packages

** Address to Mail letters using TextBehind **
Inmate Name and Inmate Number
Columbia County Prison Pennsylvania (note: please do not abbreviate the name)
P.O. Box 247
Phoenix, MD 21131

Why is TextBehind used by Lockups?
Due to the problem of letters and postcards containing, or soaked in contraband (drugs), TextBehind electronic and physical letters is replacing the former policy of allowing mail to be sent directly from inmate’s friends and family members, and vice versa.