| prev | Credit Watch | next |
|---|
Protecting Your Identity and Credit
The first step to protecting your credit is to check your credit report. Your credit report might have bad or misleading information. Even worse, there may be people pretending to be you.
Here is good news for consumers: An ammendment to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) allows consumers one free credit report from the big three credit reporting agencies each year. For more information on this process check the FTC Web Site and check out the www.AnnualCreditReport.com service.
Before giving any personal information online, make sure the SSL lock is shown on your computer browser.
NOTE, You only get one free credit report a year, this credit report does not warn you of any attempts to access your credit between your annual check ups.
In response to the consumer demand for better tools to watch one's credit, the major credit bureaus like Equifax have developed a host of programs to let you see your credit information and monitor access to the information.
The credit bureaus are interested in maintaining accurate databases. Sadly, they often do not trust the general public with changes. If there is bad or misleading information on your report, you can often get it corrected by contacting the bureaus. In many cases it is better to contact a lawyer such as the Lexington Law Firm.
Finally, if your credit report looks horrid because you spend more than you earn and are late paying your bills...I suggest that you spend less or get a different job.