What to Look For on Your Credit Report

By now most people have heard that checking your credit report a couple of times a year is a relatively inexpensive way to help ensure you haven't fallen prey to certain types of identity theft. There are three credit reporting bureaus from which you can obtain your report at a cost of under $35: Equifax (www.equifax.com), Experian (www.experian.com), and TransUnion (www.transunion.com).

Some fraudulent activity on your credit report may be easy to spot, like lines of credit opened in your name. But other signs of something amiss may be so subtle that you skim right past them. Here are two things to check for:



Identity thieves will invariably use a different address than your own when opening lines of credit in your name so that you'll never see the statements for new charge cards. The sneaky thieves aren't paying the bills—and neither are you, since you have no knowledge of them. Unfortunately, this is something we often don't find out about until we apply for a new line of credit and find ourselves denied because of the delinquent charges someone else has stuck us with.

So make sure your personal information, like your address and Social Security number, is accurate. The report may also include a list of your current and previous employers, as well as previous home addresses, so check that this information is also correct. If it's not, someone may have used your good name and credit to help himself.



There are two types of credit inquiries that may appear on your credit report: hard and soft. Hard inquiries come from a bank, credit card company, or auto finance company. They look at your report to see what kind of credit risk you pose. A soft inquiry, on the other hand, will show up when you request a copy of your credit report.

If a hard inquiry shows up on your report and you know you haven't applied for any kind of credit, then you may well wonder if someone is trying to get credit in your name. At this point you should alert the credit reporting bureaus about possible fraudulent activity involving your credit history and offer any proof you have to back up your claim. A single mistake on a credit report can cut a consumer's credit score dramatically, according to Fair Isaac Corp. (FICO for short), the company that gives us our all-important credit scores based on the information provided by the credit reporting bureaus.



If you notice mistakes on your credit report, or if you believe you've been a victim of identity theft, you should also:

Post a fraud alert with one of the three credit reporting bureaus listed above; it will notify the other two. But just to play it safe, contact all three.

File a victim's statement with the credit reporting bureaus requesting that creditors contact you to verify all applications for credit.

File a police report to offer evidence of identity theft to creditors.

Let stores and credit card companies know that your name has been used fraudulently, and request documentation from them to show proof of any bogus activity in your name.

Change your account numbers immediately if you suspect your credit accounts or ATM/debit cards have been used fraudulently; your bank will authorize new cards and PINs for you.

Notify the U.S. Postal Service if you suspect a thief has filed a change-of-address form for you.

Notify the Social Security Administration to report the fraudulent use of your Social Security number. Call (800) 269-0271 or go to the Office of the Inspector General site at www.socialsecurity.gov/oig/guidelin. htm.

Change your driver's license number if you believe someone is using yours fraudulently.

Report the identity theft to the Federal Trade Commission at (877) ID-THEFT (877-438-4338).

It is vital to keep a detailed paper trail if you suspect anything amiss on your credit reports. Evidence of your innocence can save you a lot of money and heartache down the road.

A final note: The three major credit reporting bureaus don't always have the same information. Some lenders report information to just one or two of them. So for a completely accurate take on your credit situation, you'll want to get a copy of your report separately from each of the three bureaus, or a combination report of all three reports, available from each of the three bureaus. <