title Special Agent for its officers. Congress changed this title to "Post Office Inspector" in 1880 to differentiate the federal postal agents from the multitude of other "special agents" employed by railway and stagecoach companies. Finally, in 1954, the title changed again to "Postal Inspector" to reflect their relationship to all phases of the postal system and the U.S. Mail, instead of only post offices. In 1873, one of their primary duties was the enforcement of obscenity prohibitions under the Comstock Act, named after Postal Inspector Anthony Comstock. Jurisdiction and activities As fact-finding and investigative agents, Postal Inspectors are sworn federal law enforcement officers who carry firearms, make arrests, and serve federal search warrants and subpoenas. Inspectors work closely with U.S. attorneys, other law enforcement agencies, and local prosecutors to investigate postal cases and prepare them for court. For example, on all international mail, Postal Inspectors work closely with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); while on domestic mail, inspectors work closely with state and local law enforcement agencies. There are approximately 1,200 Postal Inspectors stationed throughout the United States and abroad who enforce more than 200 federal laws covering investigations of crimes that adversely affect or fraudulently use the U.S. Mail and postal system. The USPIS has responsibility to safeguard over 600,000 Postal Service employees and billions of pieces of mail transported globally each year by air, land, rail, and sea. Prior to 1996, USPIS was the only investigative agency of the Postal Service; however, with the creation of the USPS Office of Inspector General in 1996, they assumed many duties previously carried out by postal inspectors. The USPS OIG conducts independent audits and investigations of USPS. Audits of postal programs and operations help to determine whether the programs and operations are efficient and cost-effective. These investigations help prevent and detect fraud, waste, and misconduct, and they have a deterrent effect on postal crimes. The OIG primarily took over the Postal Inspection Service's audit function, as well as investigations of fraud (against the USPS), waste, and abuse. Since the September 11, 2001, attacks, the USPIS has also investigated several cases where ricin, anthrax, and other toxic substances were sent through the mail. Although the USPIS has a wide jurisdiction, USPIS investigations can be categorized into these seven types of investigative teams and functions: Fraud: These types of investigation involve