What is a credit report?

ID fraud takes place when a criminal manages to get hold of sufficient personal data – such as bank account details, card numbers, addresses, full names and dates of birth – to impersonate innocent people and borrow money in their names or take over their existing accounts. The result can ruin your credit rating and take months to resolve.

Top tips for preventing ID fraud

Keep data secure:

• Never write down your PIN numbers or passwords or they could be stolen.

• Don’t share intimate financial details with anyone (especially cold callers). The more people who know your account details, the more likely they are to be compromised.

• Shred any sensitive financial documents before throwing them away – criminals raid the bins looking for useful information.

• Don’t carry important items around with you when you don’t need them – that includes passports, driving licences and even credit cards.

• Redirect your post when you move home and always report missing post to the post office in case it is being intercepted.

• Register on the electoral roll at your current address – this helps to prevent fraudsters from impersonating you.

Stay vigilant:

• Report any thefts to the police and suspicious transactions on your accounts to your bank or card issuer.

• Check bills and statements carefully, looking for any transactions you don’t recognise – they could indicate card or identity fraud.

• Check your credit report regularly for any financial applications you don’t recognise.

For more information on identity fraud and how to protect yourself, visit www.identity-theft.org.uk or www.stop-idfraud.co.uk

You can see your Experian credit report for free with a 30-day trial of CreditExpert, the UK’s leading credit monitoring and identity fraud protection service. You will also be alerted by e-mail or text if there is a significant change to your credit report, such as a new application for credit.

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Monitor your credit report and protect against ID fraud>