One of the biggest weapons against identity theft is your credit report contents. They (all three) can tell you in a second if things have gone awry with your credit by showing up to minute tansactions that you may not be aware of.

Consumers Across the Country Eligible for Free Annual Credit Reports
Starting September 1, consumers in 14 East Coast states join the rest of the country in qualifying for a free annual credit report from each of the three nationwide consumer reporting companies – Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. The free reports were mandated by Congress in The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACTA), which requires the nationwide credit bureaus to provide consumers with a free copy of their credit report, at their request, once every 12 months. Consumers who want to access their credit report online can go to annualcreditreport.com.

“The right to receive a free credit report is an important new tool for consumers,” said Deborah Platt Majoras, Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission. “Not only does checking the credit report give consumers a valuable snapshot of their credit histories, it permits them to detect and correct errors, and spot and stop identity theft.”

Credit reports contain consumers’ identification and financial information, including payment history with different creditors, inquiries made by various financial institutions, and information on the public record, such as foreclosures or bankruptcies. Consumer reporting companies collect and sell this information to lenders and other businesses that have a permissible purpose to obtain it.

Access to the free credit reports was phased in across the country in four installments from west to east starting last December. September 1 marks the final phase of the roll-out. Consumers in Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and all U.S. territories are now eligible to receive their reports.

Consumers who visit annualcreditreport.com to get their free report online should close their Internet browser after obtaining their report to be sure their transaction is secure and their personal information is not at risk. Consumers also may order their free annual credit report by calling toll-free, 1-877-322-8228, or by mailing a completed Annual Credit Report Request Form to:

Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281.

The form can be downloaded from annualcreditreport.com or from the FTC’s Web site. It also can be requested by calling the FTC’s Consumer Response Center at 1-877-FTC-HELP.

Consumers may choose to order free reports from all three nationwide consumer reporting companies at the same time, or stagger their requests over the course of the year. Consumers are eligible to order a free credit report any time – they are not required to submit their request within a certain period of time.

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