Taking Control of Your Credit Report First name Last name | Date

Taking Control of Your Credit Report First name Last name Date

Who We Are and What We Do Protecting Consumers Enforcement Consumer and business education Building partnerships and coalitions

Your Credit Report Why it matters Fixing mistakes Spotting credit repair scammers Taking control

Why Your Credit Matters Your credit history can make a big difference when you try to apply for a loan or credit card buy or lease a car rent an apartment get a job buy insurance

Get Your FREE Credit Reports Visit AnnualCreditReport.com, or Call 1-877-322-8228

What’s a Credit Score? Based on info in your credit report Lots of scoring systems There is no free annual score

Review Your Credit Reports Personal information Account information Recent credit inquiries

Fix Mistakes on Your Credit Report Dispute mistakes with the credit bureau reporting the error, and the business that supplied the information Visit ftc.gov/credit for credit bureau contact info, sample letters, and more!

If Inaccurate Information is Due to Identity Theft

How To Spot Credit Repair Scams Scammers say: Credit problems? No problem! Scammer say: We can remove bankruptcies, judgments, liens, and bad loans from your credit file forever! Scammers say: We can erase your bad credit, guaranteed!

Credit Repair Scams – Look For the Red Flags Scammers insist you pay them before they help you Scammers tell you not to contact the credit bureaus yourself Scammers tell you to dispute accurate information on your credit report Scammers tell you to lie on your credit and loan applications Learn more at ftc.gov/credit, “Fixing Your Credit FAQs”

Take Control of Your Credit Pay bills by the due date Pay off debt (especially credit card debt) Avoid taking on new debt Consider talking with a reputable credit counselor Be patient!

Report Fraud to the FTC English: ReportFraud.ftc.gov Spanish: ReporteFraude.ftc.gov

Get and Share FREE Resources Learn about credit: ftc.gov/credit Learn about scams: consumer.ftc.gov Keep in touch: ftc.gov/consumeralerts Get print materials: ftc.gov/bulkorder

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