subject: Keeping A Keen Eye For Credit Report Scams [print this page] If you are having trouble getting a loan approved because of a low credit score, do not get tempted to have someone fix it for you. Fraudulent companies who pose as businesses fixing credit scores are everywhere these days. Do not be that desperate because you can be the next victim of bankruptcy or identity theft if you respond to their ads. Instead, keep yourself protected and develop a keen eye for scammers.
Avoid quick fixes. Be alert for ads that offer an instant debt relief. Ads like this may only be telling you to file bankruptcy. Bankruptcy stays on your credit report for ten years. It can prevent you from getting a good credit, a job, insurance or even a decent apartment. Although bankruptcy does offer a relief on debt, it should be at the bottom of your choices and not the first thing you consider.
You should also be alert for Advance-Fee Scams. Usually, they prey on consumers who have difficulty in obtaining credit. They will ask you to pay them a fee up-front and promise that your personal loan or credit card application will soon be approved. These kinds of scheme for fixing credit score are often illegal and will have you lose $100 or more to their scam. There are indeed legitimate creditors who offer extensions of credits such as that on credit cards, loans and mortgages but they require an application fee or appraisal fee in advance. However, legitimate creditors will never guarantee that you will get the loan in advance.
Do not give your credit card number, Social Security number, or bank account information over the telephone. Unless, of course, you are know the company asking for it and why it is necessary that you provide them with such information. This is usually how identities get stolen. If you are now a victim of identity theft, better ask credit bureaus for a credit report freeze on fraud alert. This way, potential lenders would know that someone else is taking your identity.
Protect yourself from frauds. Scammers are becoming more and more intelligent by the day. They appear on televisions, are heard on radios, and are read on newspapers, making them look legitimate. They offer to help you with your credit report but they only disappear with your money. If a company offers to help you with your financial burden, they should first and foremost advice you of your legal rights if you respond to their offer. You should know that laws are made to protect you from frauds and not, as scammers would say, to be used to relieve you of debt.
