Don’t be caught unaware of a potential threat to your identity! When requesting an annual credit report, open your browser and TYPE in: https://www.annualcreditreport.com. In this way you can make sure you are not logging into any other sites that are attempting to steal your identity. Do not follow a link to get to this website, because it may lead you to a false site! There are many scammers who try to steal people’s identity by advertising false websites purporting to give you your credit report. www.annualcreditreport.com, however, is an excellent one. If you regularly request and review your credit report, you can make sure that no one has gotten your bank card or credit card number and is using it illegally. You will never receive an email directly from the Annual Credit Report Request Service. If you receive one, you’ll know it is not from the official site, so do not answer it.
There are several ways you can request your free credit report: online, by phone, or through the mail. You can view your free credit report online immediately as soon as you can verify your identity. If you request your credit report by phone or mail, you will receive your free credit report within fifteen days.
You can also receive a free credit file disclosure once every 12 months. You can request your credit file disclosure will be from each of the nationwide consumer credit reporting companies: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. It gives more information than the general credit report, as it provides you with all of the information in your credit file maintained by a consumer reporting company. This is information about you that could be provided by this company, in a consumer report about you to a third party, such as a lender. A credit file disclosure also includes a record of everyone who has ever made an “inquiry” about you and received your consumer report, over a given period of time. These inquiries may be pre-approved offers of credit, insurance reviews, or medical account information which cannot be disclosed to third party users of consumer reports.
It is to your benefit to regularly request your annual credit report, and especially your free credit file disclosure, as you will then have all the information about your financial situation that others may request.
Donna earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of Massachusetts at Boston with a major in psychology, and a minor in education. She holds a master’s degree in special needs from Lesley College in Cambridge, Mass. She subsequently earned her certification as an environmental educator in North Carolina, and enjoys empowering people to create an earth-friendly lifestyle that supports sustainability. She also likes creative writing, furniture upholstering, flower arranging, drawing, and dancing. She is an organic gardener, and also is an animal lover, having several cats. She spends a lot of time appreciating nature, and is especially fond of the beaches of Cape Cod, the mountains of Maine, and the rivers of North Carolina.
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