Each creditor reports information about personal identity, employment history, credit loans, credit cards, public records and payment history to one or all three Credit Repositories. Commonly known as Credit Bureaus, these Repositories are Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. A credit report from a single Repository may or may not contain all of your credit information. Fortunately, all three credit bureaus offer online access to their copy of your credit file. Additionally, for your convenience, EQUIFAX offers a 3 in 1 report that contains all information from all three credit bureaus.

Disputed Items

Dispute instructions and forms are provided when purchasing credit files. Depending on which Credit Repository you select, your report(s) can be viewed online or mailed to your home. In some instances, if your credit report is delivered online, you may be able to dispute items online. If you receive your reports via mail, disputes will need to be documented and mailed back. In either case, instructions and forms for disputing items are included when purchasing your credit report(s).

Credit scoring is a system creditors use to help determine whether to give you credit. Information about you and your credit experiences, such as your bill-paying history, the number and type of accounts you have, late payments, collection actions, outstanding debt, and the age of your accounts, is collected from your credit application and your credit report. Using a statistical program, creditors compare this information to the credit performance of consumers with similar profiles. A credit scoring system awards points for each factor that helps predict who is most likely to repay a debt. A total number of points -- a credit score -- helps predict how creditworthy you are, that is, how likely it is that you will repay a loan and make the payments when due.

To improve your credit score, concentrate on paying your bills on time, paying down outstanding balances, and not taking on new debt. It's likely to take some time to improve your score significantly.

Because your credit report is an important part of many credit scoring systems, it is very important to make sure it's accurate before you submit a credit application.

Up until recently, the only way to monitor your personal credit file was to manually order your report via the phone or mailing in a request. Today you can purchase and view your personal credit report on-line.

Even better, you can sign up with Equifax or Experian to have your personal credit files monitored on an ongoing basis. This means that for an annual fee you will be notified (via email) when something on your credit report changes. Additionally, these monitoring services allow you to view your credit report multiple times throughout the year.

If you or anyone you know has ever been a victim of credit reporting errors, ID Theft or credit fraud, these monitoring services are the peace of mind you've been waiting for!

Important! Equifax, Trans Union and Experian are separate companies and are not used by all creditors. Therefore, signing up for a monitoring service with one does not provide monitoring for the others. It's suggested that you purchase the monitoring service from each.

By obtaining your name, Social Security number, credit card number, or some other piece of your personal information for their own use. In short, identity theft occurs when someone appropriates your personal information without your knowledge to commit fraud or theft.

Here are some ways that identity thieves work:

They open a new credit card account, using your name, date of birth, and Social Security number. When they use the credit card and don’t pay the bills, the delinquent account is reported on your credit report.

They call your credit card issuer and, pretending to be you, change the mailing address on your credit card account. Then, your imposter runs up charges on your account. Because your bills are being sent to the new address, you may not immediately realize there's a problem.

They establish cellular phone service in your name.

They open a bank account in your name and write bad checks on that account.

By managing your personal information wisely, cautiously and with an awareness of the issue, you can help guard against identity theft:

Order a copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit reporting agencies several times per year or for your convenience sign up for a monitoring service.