Get Your Free Credit Reports without Getting Scammed
As of September 1, 2005, everyone is eligible to receive free credit reports from the three major credit bureaus due to a new law. However, bogus web sites are already being used to trick members into paying instead of receiving them for free. These phony sites are similar to the original site but are simply misspellings of the official site. They will ask you sign up for credit monitoring or a look at your credit score – for an extra fee, of course. Do not be deceived by them! They are trying to earn money off of your confusion. Here are the only ways to order FREE credit reports: • By e-mail: www.annualcreditreport.com • By phone: 877.322.8228 • By mail: Annual Credit Report Request Service PO Box 105281 Atlanta, GA 30348-5281 Here are some tips to make sure you won’t end up paying for those “free” reports: • Don’t use an Internet search engine to find “free credit report.” This may bring up false web sites or spam. • If retrieving by the Internet, print or download your credit report(s) immediately. The company may not pull it up a second time for free if the power was accidentally turned off on your computer or other complications occurred after it was shown on your screen. • After accessing your credit information, close your browser so that no one else can access it. To make the most of this free service, don’t order all three credit reports at one time. Space them throughout the year. This will allow you to see if anything has changed.