Who Needs Credit Scores, Credit Reports, and Credit Monitoring
In 2008 there were 10 million victims of identity theft in the United States. By 2009, 1 in every 10 U.S. consumers had already fallen victim to identity theft. Victims of identity theft report spending anywhere from 3 to 5,840 hours on repairing the damage. 26-32% of identity theft victims spend a 4 to 6 months trying to fix their credit and 11-23% report having to deal with it for 7 months to a year.
Many people mistakenly think that because they have little or no credit, that they will never fall victim to credit fraud or identity theft. However, those people are often the most vulnerable. Why? Because they often have the least interest in monitoring and safeguarding their credit information.
Anyone with a social security number is susceptible to credit fraud and identity theft. Have you ever received an offer of credit in the mail? Then you are susceptible!
At the bare minimum, every person should review their credit report at least once per year. Once per year leaves a big time lag that makes dealing with damage more difficult, but at least you’ll know within twelve months that there is a problem. If you don’t check your credit report, the damage could continue on for years without you knowing.
The much more prudent method is to subscribe to an inexpensive credit monitoring service with the added protection of credit fraud insurance, such as that offered by National Credit Report. They offer a free credit report, free credit score, and a free 7 day trial of their credit monitoring services.
