As I’ve said before in this blog, it’s very important to keep an eye on your credit. The simplest way is to get your free annual credit report from each of the credit bureaus. This will allow you to keep a general eye on how your credit report is doing. But what about when that is not enough? What if you have reason to be concerned?

It’s time to take stronger measures.

Let’s say you just received a notice that your credit information has possibly been obtained by someone. You can request a 90-day alert be put on your credit so that you must be called in order for any credit requests to be put through. This kind of fraud alert is helpful in protecting your credit for the 90 days it is in force, although it does limit your own ability to get quick credit during that period. But if you have reason to be concerned, it is a good place to start. Best of all, you only have to tell one bureau; it will notify the others.

Now, if you know for a fact that your identity has been stolen, and have proof (a police report is sufficient), you can have an alert put on your records for seven years. Same benefits and problems as the 90-day alert. If for any reason you want it removed early, you can cancel it, but you’ll have to prove your identity.

You can also place a freeze on your account if you live in California. Other states may soon have similar measures. This is a rather extreme measure, however, as it means your credit information cannot be reviewed by anyone. But if you are having serious problems with identity theft, it may be worth your while.

Finally, if you don’t feel that getting your free annual reports is sufficient protection, consider paying for a credit monitoring service. There are ones that will monitor all three bureaus for you. You will then be notified if there is a new account or inquiry to your account.

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