Have you ever looked at your credit report and wondered what some of the information or accounts were that is being reported to your credit report? Things like previous addresses, employers and even accounts that you know you never had can appear on your credit report. Sometimes this is simply a mistake and information was merged into your social security number but it also may be as serious as identity theft.

What to do with that information? First, you should try to determine if the information is completely inaccurate or is it just information that may have been reported incorrectly. For example, the street name on a previous address is inaccurate but is similar to a previous address. Someone may have just typed in the wrong information that was reported to the credit bureau. But if you see an address in a completely different state that you never have lived at, then you might have been a victim of identity theft.

Start with disputing that information with the credit bureau. Don’t give up until the information is either removed or corrected. False information such as inaccurate addresses and such open you up for becoming a victim of identity theft. In fact, you may have already become a victim.

You might find out that there are accounts listed that you don’t remember having. First, dispute these accounts letting them know that these accounts are not your accounts. Ask them to provide you with proof on opening the account. Then you determine if those accounts were accounts that you forgot about. But if they are not your accounts, then you may need to file identity theft paperwork. You may be required to contact the police department and file a police report.

Identity theft is not something that you should take lightly. By not responding quickly enough, you may be opening yourself to becoming responsible for accounts that have used your name without your permission. By involving the police early enough, you may limit your liability and financial loss.

Some accounts may have been merged into your account by accident, but without disputing them they show on your credit history report. This is the problem with negative information on your account. It can really hurt you if you don’t take the time to review and dispute inaccurate information.

Not everything on your credit report may be of your doing. Dispute everything on your report that is not your information first. Credit Repair may be necessary to fix any issues on your credit report.

This entry was posted on Friday, March 27th, 2009 at 12:49 am and is filed under Consumer Rights, Credit Repair, Your Credit. You can follow this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.