Don't Enter Credit Card Data For 'Free' Credit Report
Added April 9, 2009 by Ilyce R. Glink
Summary: How can you get a free copy of your credit report? Visit AnnualCreditReport.com or CreditKarma.com - any other site will likely lure you into signing up for a credit monitoring service or other services. At AnnualCreditReport.com you can get one copy of your credit report from each of the three credit reporting bureaus once every year. It's a good idea to look at your credit report to see if there's any inaccurate information and just before you're getting ready to buy a home.
Q: After reading about how to get a "free copy of your credit report", I went online and without my knowledge was directed to FreeCredit.com. They thanked me in an e-mail for my membership to Triple Advantage Monitoring. I am so upset that this company has all of my important personal information, along with my credit card information. Please inform all of your readers of this unbelievable scam.
A: You’re not the only one to be fooled by a Web site purporting to offer “free” credit reports and scores. However, there are a couple of places to get a truly free copy of your credit report online: AnnualCreditReport.com and CreditKarma.com.
AnnualCreditReport.com is a Web site sponsored by the three main credit reporting bureaus, Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian. It will not ask for your credit card information (that should have been a red flag for you) unless you purchase a credit score.
Credit Karma is a Web site that offers a TransUnion credit score. When I signed up, it did not require me to input a credit card at all. CreditKarma works by offering you credit cards that match your credit profile. But you’re under no obligation to apply for any of the deals you’re offered.
Any Web site that purports to give you a “free credit score” or a “free credit report” but which asks for a credit card number to generate your “free” score or report should be avoided.
April 9, 2009
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Comments
shb says
I find it really scary to think that your personal credit information is so "untouchable"! This important info should be something we can take a look online just like our bank statements. Also, with the "real" free credit report websites, they don't give you your score, so you're still left not knowing. I think it's all just a way to get money back into the system.
Ilyce says
The way our personal information is handled IS scary. I particularly am nervous about how it is handled in doctors' offices. While most doctors are honorable people, there are nutty and evil souls everywhere and the incidents of medical identity theft are on the rise. Check out our videos on identity theft and especially medical identity theft.
rifat says
I am confused: tried to get the "free" credit report from the first address on your list (secure.3bureaureportsplus.com), but they asked for a credit card ($1) and you say "don't enter credit card data for "free" credit report".
mike says
companies are out there who offer you a "free" credit report that is anything but "free". you are hooked into paying for what you can get for free at "ANNUAL CREDIT REPORT. COM" The owners of these company should be castrated. m. podob
Ilyce says
@Rifat: Mike is right. The only place to get a truly FREE copy of your credit history from each of the three credit reporting bureaus is www.annualcreditreport.com. CreditKarma.com also offers a free credit score, but it isn't the FICO score that most lenders use. The advertising on ThinkGlink.com works like this: google searches our site and places links to advertisers that you might be interested in using. We don't control it at all. But we also don't necessarily recommend the companies that advertise on the site. That's how we keep the advertising and editorial separate. Meanwhile, go to www.annualcreditreport.cm for truly free credit histories. If you want your credit score, you should buy it at AnnualCreditReport.com for around $7. Choose the Equifax score, which is closest to the FICO score.
Vicki says
I WAS GLAD TO SEE YOU PRINTED THE ITEM ABOUT THE 'FREE' CREDIT REPORT IN YESTERDAY'S PAPER. I, TOO, FELL FOR THIS ONE AND I HAD A $49.95 CHARGE POP UP ON MY DEBIT CARD FOR THIS 'TRIPLE ADVANTAGE' THING, WHATEVER THAT IS. YOU MIGHT WANT TO ADVISE YOUR READERS THAT, AS I DID, THEY CAN CALL THE 'TRIPLE ADVANTAGE' PEOPLE PROMPTLY AND TELL THEM YOU WANT TO OPT OUT. THERE IS USUALLY A TELEPHONE NUMBER IN THE 'DETAILS' OR 'MEMO' ENTRY ON YOUR BANK STATEMENT. I DO ONLINE BANKING AND CHECK ALL MY ACCOUNTS ABOUT EVERY OTHER DAY, SO I CAUGHT THE CHARGE IMMEDIATELY. THEY TRY TO TALK YOU INTO KEEPING IT, BUT STAND FIRM AND THEY WILL REVERSE THE CHARGE PROMPTLY. WHAT I DON'T UNDERSTAND IS WHY THIS ADVERTISER ISN'T MADE TO CHANGE THEIR ADVERTISEMENT TO MAKE THE ONE LINE BLURB OF 'OFFER CONTINGENT UPON ENROLLMENT IN TRIPLE ADVANTAGE' LOUDER, UP FRONT OR IN TEXT ON THE SCREEN, INSTEAD OF AT THE END OF THE COMMERCIAL IN A HUSHED AND RAPID SENTENCE. THEIR ANNOYING COMMERCIALS ARE ON SEVERAL TIMES EACH EVENING IN THIS AREA. I WOULD THINK THAT THE STATION ACCEPTING THE ADVERTISEMENT WOULD BE PICKIER ABOUT THE CONTENT, WHEN IT IS SO OBVIOUSLY MISLEADING.