Want to Lower Your FICO?

Along the lines of yesterday's post I want to point out that when you (or anyone acting on your behalf), issues a fraud alert in your name with the credit bureaus you stand a good chance of lowering your score. By issuing such an alert you are saying that you believe you are at increased risk to identity theft. That consideration alone can lower your score as you are seen as a credit risk. Additionally, issuing a fraud alert also infers that as well as being a potential victim you might be a potential thief. Identity thieves have been known to issue alerts in the name of their victims in order to obfuscate the crime. They use it as a smokescreen to continue to use the stolen identification. The bureaus initially have no way of knowing which is the case.
Fraud alerts should be limited to the uses intended by the law, to provide an individual with a proactive tool to use in the event of identity theft. Any action taken with the credit bureaus can have an adverse effect on your scoring, just as an inquiry or late payment statement does.

Another tool we should never forget is http://www.annualcreditreport.com/ . You have the right to see each of your 3 national credit reports on an annual basis. This will not affect your score. Stagger them in order to have a fresh report every four months.