Free credit reports?
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From: KenK on 9 Dec 2009 09:15 I'm going to try to get at least one of the annual free credit reports I'm supposed to have available. Any tips on what site to go to? What to watch out for? Dangerous mistakes I could make? A quick free credit report Google search shows a large number of possibilities. Haven't looked at any yet. Sounds too good to be true. What's in it for them? I suspect some are dangerous. TIA -- "When you choose the lesser of two evils, always remember that it is still an evil." - Max Lerner
From: Clincher on 9 Dec 2009 09:52 "KenK" <invalid(a)invalid.com> wrote in message news:Xns9CDC49D64F1E9invalidcom(a)130.133.1.4... > I'm going to try to get at least one of the annual free credit reports I'm > supposed to have available. > > Any tips on what site to go to? What to watch out for? Dangerous mistakes > I > could make? A quick > > free credit report > > Google search shows a large number of possibilities. Haven't looked at any > yet. Sounds too good to be true. What's in it for them? I suspect some are > dangerous. You're correct to be concerned. Scam sites that trick you into thinking they're the official annual credit report site is a big business. If you're lucky, those scam sites will just sign you up into a credit monitoring service which you'll have to remember to cancel you out of. If you're unlucky, you just handed info over to an identity theft outfit. I won't list the official URL because 1. It's not something I keep handy. 2. You shouldn't take my word for it any more than you should take Google's (and Google isn't contending to send you to the official site anyway) Go to the FTC's website and look up the URL there. And of course, take all the standard precautions (verify that the site is SSL and the SSL cert has the correct info.) And don't assume that it's the official site just because the owner is one of the 3 credit bureaus.
From: Joe Negron on 9 Dec 2009 10:04 In misc.consumers.frugal-living, you wrote: >I'm going to try to get at least one of the annual free credit reports I'm >supposed to have available. > >Any tips on what site to go to? What to watch out for? Dangerous mistakes I >could make? A quick > >free credit report > >Google search shows a large number of possibilities. Haven't looked at any >yet. Sounds too good to be true. What's in it for them? I suspect some are >dangerous. www.annualcreditreport.com is the legit one, IIRC. Consumer Reports magazine (et al.) recommends the best strategy is to stagger your requests every four months; that is, get one from Experian in (say) January, one from TransUnion in May, and one from Equifax in September; this way, you'll be monitoring your reports on an ongoing basis. -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ No entertainment is so cheap as reading, nor any pleasure so lasting. --Mary Wortley Montagu When a group of Oxford undergraduates heard that Rudyard Kipling received ten shillings for every word he wrote, they sent him ten shillings by telegram during their meeting: 'Please send us one of your very best words.' Back came the word a few minutes later: 'Thanks.' --Marshall McLuhan, 'Understanding Media' ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Joe Negron from Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, NY, USA
From: clams_casino on 9 Dec 2009 10:27 Joe Negron wrote: >In misc.consumers.frugal-living, you wrote: > > >>I'm going to try to get at least one of the annual free credit reports I'm >>supposed to have available. >> >>Any tips on what site to go to? What to watch out for? Dangerous mistakes I >>could make? A quick >> >>free credit report >> >>Google search shows a large number of possibilities. Haven't looked at any >>yet. Sounds too good to be true. What's in it for them? I suspect some are >>dangerous. >> >> > >www.annualcreditreport.com is the legit one, IIRC. Consumer Reports >magazine (et al.) recommends the best strategy is to stagger your >requests every four months; that is, get one from Experian in (say) >January, one from TransUnion in May, and one from Equifax in September; >this way, you'll be monitoring your reports on an ongoing basis. > > > Just be sure it's a legitimate site and be careful NOT to sign up for a fee based, ongoing access. They are quite evasive in their "small print".
From: h on 9 Dec 2009 14:36
"Balvenieman" <balvenieman(a)invalid.net> wrote in message news:evCdnSORMoIDWYLWnZ2dnUVZ_uWdnZ2d(a)earthlink.com... > > KenK <invalid(a)invalid.com> wrote: > >>Sounds too good to be true. What's in it for them? > All of the sites that I've seen -- at least those that troll for > hits -- are sucker bait for subscription services. For actual > information on the subject, read this: > http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre34.shtm > -- If you sign up for the subscription thing you can download it instantly, complete with FICO score, then cancel the subscription 90 seconds later. I do it that way every year. It's the fastest way and I've never paid a dime. |