which credit monitoring service is better?

[cubajean10]

so i used to have high credit lines and live out of the perks that a high credit score gives , but after december it all changed after asking for a credit line increase. long story short i'm looking for the top value credit monitoring service , a quick google search gave me this freebiecreditreport (putting identity guard first)but you know they might be affiliated or something so i'm asking you guys what's the top value credit monitoring service.

i read this from consumer reports:
As we've reported, you probably don't need credit monitoring if you order the truly free credit reports from AnnualCreditReport.com. Ordering one report from each of the three credit bureaus every 4 months should give you enough information without the need for a credit monitoring service's monthly fees.

but isn't that report free once a year not every 4 months, and when creditors look at your report they look at your score more than the report right? and the free report doesn't have a score right

[Hector]

I think, the reason we check our credit report is to make sure there is not any surprise. While checking it, we wanna make sure there is not any inquiry of account that you didn’t open. To make sure that you haven’t missed any payments. To make sure that there was not any identity theft.

Personally, I don’t care about credit score that much. I make sure that I don’t have too many inquiries and my debt to credit ratio is not too bad.

There are three agencies that we can get our credit report from, Equifax, TransUnion and Experian. Once a year, all these agencies allow us to check our credit report for free. So you can check your report for free three times a year – providing you are using different agency each time and that’s how you can check your credit report for free every four months.

[FHA Loan]

I agree that pulling a free report from bureau A one month, then 4 months later from bureau B, then 4 months later from bureau C... should be plenty unless you have something fishy going on to make you suspect that there is a problem.

I forget exactly what the term is, but you can put a freeze on your credit at all of the bureaus so that no one can request credit in your name unless they know some password that you have set. So if you are worried about identity theft, it appears to me that this would be a much more effective solution than simply monitoring what has happened after the fact.

[Seeker]

so i used to have high credit lines and live out of the perks that a high credit score gives , but after december it all changed after asking for a credit line increase. long story short i'm looking for the top value credit monitoring service , a quick google search gave me this freebiecreditreport (putting identity guard first)but you know they might be affiliated or something so i'm asking you guys what's the top value credit monitoring service.

i read this from consumer reports:
As we've reported, you probably don't need credit monitoring if you order the truly free credit reports from AnnualCreditReport.com. Ordering one report from each of the three credit bureaus every 4 months should give you enough information without the need for a credit monitoring service's monthly fees.

but isn't that report free once a year not every 4 months, and when creditors look at your report they look at your score more than the report right? and the free report doesn't have a score right

FHA describes the process of pulling 1 report from one company, then 4 months later doing the same with another company, etc. You are right, one report a year from each of the major three companies... stagger it.

Second question is not right. They can give you the score they pulled.... but they make their own determination from looking at total debts, income, etc. Credit Reporting Agencies and reports only provide maybe half the picture at best.... income,employment is the other half that CRAs do not monitor or care about.

Third question is right, but it does not matter. The number is only a number that represents a different view. Each of the three CRAs will have a different number.

Each lender makes it's own rules with regard to risks and lending practices. All the CRAs do, is provide a past history that hopefully is correct. They assign a number to it, but it's not consistent and lacks any meaningful information by itself. They number is all the lender needs to report to you from the CRAs, but they "loan" based on a compilation of details.

I don't pay for any credit monitoring service. I do what most do here. Usually when there's a case of ID theft, you'll notice a charge appearing where there shouldn't be any. Most often, correction needs to happen immediately. Watch your bills, do the 4 month check, and you'll be fine.

[Like2Plan]

I don't pay for any credit monitoring service. I do what most do here. Usually when there's a case of ID theft, you'll notice a charge appearing where there shouldn't be any. Most often, correction needs to happen immediately. Watch your bills, do the 4 month check, and you'll be fine.

Seeker,
Actually ID theft generally involves setting up a whole new account which you don't find out about until the thief defaults on the loan. By then, your good name (and credit rating) has been compromised.

While staggering your credit reports is better than nothing--I have found that most credit inquiries do not show up on all three credit bureaus so it could take almost a year for you to spot a problem. A lot of damage could be done in that amount of time.

[Seeker]

ID Theft has three forms as identified by the Federal Trade Commission.

The one you mention, where the thief sets up a new account, is the least likely form. Not that it cannot happen that way, but it's the most work from the thief's perspective and therefore the least likely to occur.

http://www.ftc.gov/os/2007/11/SynovateFinalReportIDTheft2006.pdf

---

OP -- you requested a credit line increase and then something happened to drive you to pay money to have your credit monitored?

At any rate, the FTC site is a great resource:

Consumer - Avoid ID Theft

[Like2Plan]

ID Theft has three forms as identified by the Federal Trade Commission.

The one you mention, where the thief sets up a new account, is the least likely form. Not that it cannot happen that way, but it's the most work from the thief's perspective and therefore the least likely to occur.

Seeker,
Whether it is not very likely or not, you cannot imagine how difficult it is to recover from this type of crime--especially if it takes you awhile to find out. And, while there are additional safeguards you can put into place which also can make it difficult for you to apply for credit (no instant credit approval).

[snafu]

The research confirms you are more likely to suffer identity theft via careless bank or government action. Do you or anyone you know personally have their identity compromised with credit obtained by theft?

On the other hand, it is common and embarrassing to be denied credit due to hold-back on mega bucks of airline tickets & reservations on one card and questioned in detail on another CC while trying to access credit in a foreign country. I now know to call CC to tell them my travel plans when I will be away for an extended period.

[Like2Plan]

Do you or anyone you know personally have their identity compromised with credit obtained by theft?

Yes. And knowing what that individual went through has made me more careful than ever....

It is funny how much things have changed. A person's SSN was routinely used everywhere. I can remember when merchants demanded the SSN (ie drivers license number) be written on the checks (remember--back in the olden days when folks used to write checks? ). Several years ago the legislators in my state thought that might not be such a good idea and made it against the law to ask for the SSN on a check in my state.

Here is a link to Privacy Rights Clearinghouse Identity Theft IQ Test that might be interesting to some:

Privacy Rights Clearinghouse Identity Theft IQ Test

[Like2Plan]

One more link:

Privacy Rights Clearinghouse Fact Sheet 17:
Coping with Identity Theft:
Reducing the Risk of Fraud

[Like2Plan]

Several companies, including the three credit bureaus, offer credit monitoring services for an annual fee ranging from $50-$120 a year. They notify you when there is any activity on your credit report, thus alerting you to possible fraud.

We do not endorse credit monitoring services because we believe that individuals should not have to pay a fee to track their credit. If you decide to subscribe, be sure to choose a service that monitors all three credit reports on an ongoing basis.

source Privacy Rights Clearinghouse Identity Fact sheet 17


I totally agree that this service should be provided free of charge. I have received the service free of charge for several years because of different incidences where different organizations did not properly protect my personal data. The standard practice is to provide one year of free monitoring (which I don't think is sufficient, either). But, having had it--it works very well--you see inquiries within a few days and you can be much more proactive if something that you did not know about pops up.

[Paladin26]

To answer the orginal question I use Citi Id monitor.

I pay 13 bucks a month, check my credit score and report for all three companies. I get notfied within 12-24 hours if anything has hit my account including inquiries. I also have a small amount of protection i.e. they will assist me if ever in a id theft and give me back up to a certain amount stole (can't remember how much).

Its not a bad service for the money, it lets me watch my credit score go up =).

[MonkeyMama]

Seeker,
Actually ID theft generally involves setting up a whole new account which you don't find out about until the thief defaults on the loan. By then, your good name (and credit rating) has been compromised.

While staggering your credit reports is better than nothing--I have found that most credit inquiries do not show up on all three credit bureaus so it could take almost a year for you to spot a problem. A lot of damage could be done in that amount of time.

Agreed.

My identity was stolen - several cards were opened in my name. It is becoming increasingly more common. I do not know where/how info was stolen - I presume from the government or somewhere where I invest in IRAs - no one else has all that personal info, and I am very careful with it. (Since this breach, I am more careful with guarding my birth date, in addition to SS#).

What I learned - is checking with each credit bureau once a year is pretty useless in discovering this type of fraud in a timely/useful manner. I Was extremely lucky that the thieves used my real phone #/address & that an astute "fraud department" at a clothing store denied some charges and called me about it. I found out about it the day the thieves opened 7 cards in my name.

I paid for credit monitoring for a year or two, (had to, at first, to find all the cards I didn't open - where they were, etc. Needed to check my report multiple times over the months - once or twice does not help AT ALL) and once it was clear the thieves were done with my ID, and the fraud alerts were working rather well, I dropped it.

What I have been using since, is kreditcarma.com. It may only pull from one credit bureau (not sure). But it will tell you how many accounts you have, how many inquiries, etc., for free. It will automatically alert you if there is anything unusual, etc. So I have been pleased with it from a "free" perspective. Then I can comb my reports every 4 months to be on the extra safe side.

They have a FAKO score, which can be somewhat useful. I know if it drops 100 points overnight, something is wrong!

[MonkeyMama]

P.S. I would fault no one for paying for a monitoring service. It beats the free stuff by a mile.

Having my identity stolen was one of my worst fears. Finding out the day it happened meant I nipped any problems in the bud. It really wasn't a biggie to clean up. I Was lucky. Only a monitoring service can give you that peace of mind. (If you only check one bureau, regularly, a pile of credit inquiries could be showing up on the other bureaus - and you would never know).

[GrimJack]

I use a site called CreditKarma - I believe they are connected with Transunion. They offer advice on increasing your credit score; they are a 'free' service but place ads (that bypass AdBuster) on you screen based on generic data collected from you.