Credit monitoring companies manage a treasure trove of information that can be damaging if it lands in the wrong hands, especially when it's been in those hands for several months.
Vullo said her department already has authority under existing regulations to
pursue credit monitoring companies but new legislation to improve consumer protections and require licensing would strengthen its hand.
Independent credit monitoring companies such as Credit Karma and Credit Sesame sometimes use scoring models that consider only the length of time that an account was actually open, but those companies are only providing FAKO scores.
Carlucci and several other lawmakers have introduced legislation that would strengthen consumer protections and increase scrutiny
of credit monitoring companies.
The credit monitoring company said the data breach, which was discovered on July 29 and disclosed publicly on Thursday, could impact 143 million people with birth dates and Social Security and drivers license numbers being compromised.
And Congress elected to do nothing after Equifax disclosed in September that hackers exploited a software flaw that
the credit monitoring company failed to fix, exposing Social Security numbers, birthdates and other personal data belonging to nearly 148 million Americans.
Equifax: The massive data breach at
the credit monitoring company Equifax exposed names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and more from a whopping 143 million Americans.
A credit freeze won't affect any activity from
a credit monitoring company or demote pre-screened offers of credit.
By entering your credit card number, you allowed
the credit monitoring company to charge your credit card if you didn't cancel the subscription within a certain period of time.
4 Tips on Choosing
a Credit Monitoring Company Although US citizens are entitled to receive free credit reports every year from the three major credit bureaus, many people don't even know they have the option, until something goes drastically wrong.
These credit monitoring companies can also help protect you from identity theft.
Credit monitoring companies allow you to get access to your credit report online, but most of the time, their services are only free for thirty days.
There are different services of
credit monitoring companies.
Credit monitoring companies can't fully detect any fraudulent activity because some creditors don't report certain accounts immediately.
But, would
a credit monitoring company be worth the $ 180 annual fee?
A consumer will get one credit score from
a credit monitoring company and think that 720 score is exactly what the mortgage lender will use in conjunction with the loan application.
Check out the BBB rating and customer reviews for
the credit monitoring companies you consider.
And Congress elected to do nothing after Equifax disclosed in September that hackers exploited a software flaw that
the credit monitoring company failed to fix, exposing Social Security numbers, birthdates and other personal data belonging to nearly 148 million Americans.