FTC Consumer Alert

Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Consumer Protection Office of Consumer & Business Education

Bogus July 1 Email Exposed: 

The Real Deal on Your Credit File Privacy

Seems like every spring, an anonymous email containing false and misleading information 

about the use of your personal information shows up in in-boxes across the country, leaving many 

consumers concerned and confused. It’s no wonder: The email message mixes apples and oranges.

Here’s what the email says:

“Just wanted to let everyone know who hasn’t already heard, the four major credit bureaus in the 

U.S. will be allowed, starting July 1, to release your credit info, mailing addresses, phone numbers... 

to anyone who requests it. If you would like to “opt out” of this release of info., you can call 1-888-

567-8688. It only takes a couple of minutes to do.”

And here’s the real deal from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the agency that enforces the 

Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

• July 1, 2001 was the deadline, under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLB), for financial institutions to let you know about their privacy policies and how you could opt out of some of their 

information-sharing practices (see Privacy Choices for Your Personal Financial Information at 

ftc.gov/credit). You may recall getting mailings or statement inserts from your financial institutions, creditors, insurance companies and brokerage firms about this. But the July 1 date is 

not – and never was – a deadline for consumers to do anything. In fact, consumers can contact 

their financial institutions anytime to opt out of information sharing practices under GLB. 

 

• Credit bureaus can release your credit information only to people with a legitimate business 

need, as recognized by the FCRA. For example, a company is allowed to get your report if 

you apply for credit, insurance, employment, or to rent an apartment. 

• You also can review a copy of your credit report to make sure it’s accurate. The FCRA requires each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies – Equifax, Experian, and 

TransUnion – to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once 

every 12 months. To order your free annual report from one or all national consumer reporting 

companies, visit www.annualcreditreport.com, call toll-free 877-322-8228, or complete the 

Annual Credit Report Request Form and mail it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P. 

O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. The form is at the back of this brochure; or you can 

print it from ftc.gov/credit. Do not contact the three nationwide consumer reporting compa-
1-877-FTC-HELP FOR THE CONSUMER

FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION ftc.gov

May 2006

nies individually. They provide free annual credit reports only through 877-322-8228, 

www.annualcreditreport.com, and Annual Credit Report Request Service, P. O. Box 

105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. For more information, see Your Access to Free Credit

Reports at ftc.gov/credit.

• Lenders and insurers also may use information in your credit file as a basis for sending you 

unsolicited offers of credit or insurance. This practice is known as “prescreening.” You can 

opt out of these offers by calling, toll-free: 1-888-5-OPTOUT (1-888-567-8688) – the same 

number in the email that goes around every spring. The major credit bureaus use this number 

to let consumers choose not to receive these “prescreened” or unsolicited credit offers. When 

you call, you’ll be asked to provide certain personal information, including your home telephone number, name, Social Security number, and date of birth. The information you provide 

is confidential and will be used only to process your request to opt out.

For More Information

To learn more about your privacy rights under the FCRA and GLB, contact the FTC. The 

FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices in the 

marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a 

complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, visit ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTCHELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity 

theft, and other fraud-related complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available 

to hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.
You have the right to get a free copy of your credit file disclosure, commonly called a credit report, once every 12 months, from each of

the nationwide consumer credit reporting companies - Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

For instant access to your free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com.

For more information on obtaining your free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call 1-877-322-8228.

Use this form if you prefer to write to request your credit report from any, or all, of the nationwide consumer credit reporting companies. The

following information is required to process your request. Omission of any information may delay your request.

If additional information is needed to process your request, the consumer credit

reporting company will contact you by mail.

Your request will be processed within 15 days of receipt and then mailed to you.

Annual Credit Report Request Form

Once complete, fold (do not staple or tape), place into a #10 envelope, affix required postage and mail to:

Annual Credit Report Request Service P.O. Box 105281 Atlanta, GA 30348-5281.

Copyright 2004, Central Source LLC

Equifax

Experian

TransUnion

I want a credit report from (shade

each that you would like to

receive):

Shade here if, for security

reasons, you want your credit

report to include no more than

the last four digits of your

Social Security Number.

Shade Circle Like This >

Not Like This >

Social Security Number:

- -

Date of Birth:

/ /

Month Day Year

First Name M.I.

Last Name JR, SR, III, etc.

Current Mailing Address:

House Number Street Name

City State ZipCode

City State ZipCode

Apartment Number / Private Mailbox For Puerto Rico Only: Print Urbanization Name

House Number Street Name

Previous Mailing Address (complete only if at current mailing address for less than two years):

Fold Here Fold Here

Fold Here Fold Here

Please use a Black or Blue Pen and write your responses in PRINTED CAPITAL LETTERS without touching the sides of the boxes like the examples listed below:

Apartment Number / Private Mailbox For Puerto Rico Only: Print Urbanization Name

31238

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