How to report fraud on your credit report

Monitoring your credit reports should be a staple of your financial routine, much like checking your bank and credit card accounts. Even if you rarely use the credit you already have or aren’t planning to apply for credit any time soon, reading through your reports consistently is critical as it can help you catch signs of fraud early.

Fraud on your credit report

Fraud on your credit report can appear in multiple ways. A series of hard inquiries you aren’t expecting may signal that someone has your personal information and is trying to use it to open credit card accounts in your name. Open and active credit accounts you don’t recognize on your credit report could be a sign they succeeded.

Fraud can also happen on accounts you’ve opened. For instance, say your credit report shows a series of missed payments on a credit card you forgot you had and never use. That  may indicate a fraudster got a hold of your credit card information and is using it to make purchases.

 

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