Denied A Credit Card Because Your Credit Score is Too High
Posted on June 30th, 2010
Yep, you read correctly.
Tags: Credit Card, Credit Score, Denied Credit Card, High
No Comments »
Mailbox Security
Posted on June 26th, 2010
One of the easiest ways for an identity thief to get access to your personal information is through an organization you most likely do business with every day: the U.S. Postal Service. It is very easy for a thief to find your account numbers, and sometimes even your Social Security number, just by going through your new or discarded mail. Here are some thing s you can do to protect yourself.
Shred any mail containing personal information before you throw it out. It is not uncommon for thieves to dig through garbage cans and recycling bins hoping to find information they can use. Shredding this information stops them in their tracks.
Put your outgoing mail that contains personal information in a locked box. If your mailbox doesn’t have a lock, use one of the blue federal mailboxes or drop your mail in the bin at the post office.
Don’t let incoming mail sit in an unlocked box. If
More New Credit Card Rules Coming Soon
Posted on June 22nd, 2010
Come August 22, there will be a series of new rules in place, intended to further protect credit card holders, thanks to the good people at the Federal Reserve.
Late Fees Capped at $25
Late fees will generally be capped at $25, instead of the near-$40 currently charged by many of the nation’s leading credit card issuers.
There will be exceptions if the card holder is a repeat offender, or if the card issuer can prove the higher fee is reasonable.
Fees Cannot Exceed Dollar Amount Tied to Violation
Card issuers will also be prohibited from charging a fee that exceeds the dollar amount associated with the consumer’s violation.
For example, a card issuer can’t charge a $25 late fee if the card holder’s missed minimum payment is only $20.
Same with an over-the-limit fee – if you only go over by $5, the card issuer can only charge $5.
Multiple Fees on Single Violations Prohibited
Additionally, card issuers will not be able to charge multiple fees for a single violation, such as a single missed payment.
Inactivity Fees Banned
Credit card issuers will also be barred from charging “inactivity fees,” a strategy that was actually recently employed to recoup losses from the first set of new credit card rules.
Finally, card issuers who raised consumer’s rates since January 1, 2009 will need to evaluate if the reason(s) behind the increase has changed, and if so, reduce the rates.
I wonder how the credit card issuers will make up for all the lost profit? Look out for new tricks folks…
Tags: Credit Card, Rules
No Comments »
Three Things to Know About HITECH Act
Posted on June 18th, 2010
A recently published article in Healthcare IT News highlights aspects of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act that may have escaped your attention.
Titled “Three things you may not know about the HITECH Act…but should“, the article hones in on aspects of the rulemaking from the US Department of Health and Human Services that healthcare organizations must follow in determining whether a privacy breach incident meets the requirements to notification.
HITECH is known primarily for the manner in which it motivates healthcare providers to implement electronic health records (EHR) systems. But as
Tags: Act
No Comments »
Identification for Identity Theft Victims
Posted on June 13th, 2010
ID Theft ID’s?
One thing victims of identity theft may not want to see again in their lives is a photo ID since the theft of theirs may have led to weeks, months or even years of frustration. However, some victims are actually getting an additional ID that is designed to help them avoid future hassles when trying to obtain credit. And, more importantly, it can help them avoid being arrested for crimes they didn’t commit.
This new form of identification is the ID Theft Passport, which is currently available in 10 states, but is growing. This ID, which looks very much like a driver’s license, can be presented to both creditors and law enforcement. The idea is that people with the Passport can use it to prove they are innocent of acts that other people perpetrated in their names.
Without such an ID, many identity theft victims have ended up in jail, gotten their vehicles repossessed and the like. Peopl
Tags: Identity Theft, Victims
No Comments »
Credit dude on hiring and credit scores, Des Moines Register
Posted on June 11th, 2010
To: Matt
From: Greg Fisher, creditscoring.com
Date: April 29, 2010
Subject: credit score, employers, Des Moines Register
You said: “Know your credit score. Many employers today take your credit score into consideration when determining if you are the right person for the job.” However, the consumer reporting agencies do not provide credit scores for employment screening.
You are at the top of the news searches this morning. The story about people saying employers use credit scores is getting boring. But, identifying who provided that information: Now that’s interesting.
Who is your source regarding credit score use by employers?
Tags: Des Moines, Des Moines Register, Moines Register, Register
No Comments »