How to Protect Your Credit

Probably the most important asset you have outside of your family is your credit.  Everything these days is dependent on it.  The cost of a home loan, automobile purchase and even major appliances depends on your ability to pay.  Because this is governed by reporting entities, there is much room for error.  It is not uncommon for errors on your credit report to go unnoticed for a year or more.  It rears its ugly head when you attempt to buy a new car or a houseful of furniture.  Even though you may think your credit is immaculate, if you do not monitor it closely you may be in for a real surprise.  Identity theft in America and world wide is on the rise each year.  Here's how to protect yourself.

Monitor your credit report

It is vital that you monitor your credit report on a regular basis.  By federal law, you are able to receive a free credit report once per year from the three major credit bureaus.  There are also many reporting agencies online.  They allow you to obtain a free credit report, but, most importantly, offer a credit monitoring service for a small fee.  These services will monitor your credit report, send you email alerts of suspicious activity, and give you 24 hour access to all your information.  Fees range from $10 - $12.95 per month, and give the most peace of mind you can have for the price.

Use common sense

We become so inundated with credit card statements, credit card offers, utility bills and health care statements that we do not realize how important this paperwork is to the safety of our credit.  Criminals are resourceful and clever, and have so many ways of stealing your identity that it is amazing.  Here's a list of things to do.

            * Shred everything that includes information about you.  Even credit card offers can be used by crooks to open an account in your name and run you very quickly into debt.  Shred all credit cards you no longer use.

            * Keep all ATM receipts or receipts given when you make any purchase with a debit or credit card.  You can sit outside any convenience store and watch customers walking out and throwing their receipts into the trash.  Never do that.

            * Be very stingy with your information.  If a person calls you asking for information and say they are from the credit card company, you should not have to give out information such as your mother's maiden name or the city you were born in.  This is on file at the company.  If they are adamant, tell them you wish to verify that you are indeed talking to the proper company.  Politely hang up and call them yourself, using the number off your credit card.

            * Be careful of the information you have printed on your personal checks.  Remember that when you hand out checks, you are giving personal information to people, such as your driver's license number and social security number.  When checks pass through a banking system, several people handle them, and almost anyone can get this information.

            * If credit card statements are more than 2 weeks late in reaching you, contact the postal office to see if anyone has forwarded your mail to another address.  Then, contact your bank or credit card company to see if the statement has been mailed.  Remember that crooks are resourceful.  There is a breed of crooks that "dumpster dive" to obtain any credit related information. 

Your credit card statement

One of the best ways to catch unauthorized activity is to carefully read your credit card statement each month.  Don't make the mistake of just glancing at the due date and amount due.  Look through the statement carefully.  You might be surprised at what you find.

If when dealing with your financial institution you are told that your statements are being sent to a different address than your own that isn't authorized by you, tell the company immediately that you did not authorize this and that you are concerned someone might be using your account.  If this happens to you, ask for copies of all statements and charge transactions and debits since your last statement.  You can then work through your account with your representative to determine if any of the activity was fraudulent.

Your credit is your best asset and the one thing most likely to be compromised.  Protecting yourself not only makes good sense, but saves you grief down the road.  Follow these simple steps to insure your credit is protected.