The Pros and Cons of Credit Monitoring?

Answer 1

Millions of Americans have enrolled in credit monitoring services over the past few years. In fact, as of 2008, 65 million Americans were paying monthly fees for this service. Credit monitoring involves the daily monitoring of your credit reports to check for changes and possible fraudulent activity. Consumers are typically alerted by email when changes are detected.

When a new line of credit is opened in your name, you will be alerted when you have enrolled in monitoring services. These services also apprise you of when your credit score rises or falls. While it is a good idea to keep a check on your credit reports and your credit scores, credit monitoring may not protect you against identity theft.

The chief problem with monitoring services is that you are only notified after a change occurs. If someone has opened credit in your name, you will still have to deal with resolving the problem after it occurs. Some experts advise putting a freeze on your credit instead of paying for monitoring services. Freezing your credit involves a one-time fee, while monitoring services generally charge on a monthly basis.

Many consumers who are working to rebuild their credit have found it helpful to enroll in services that monitor their credit. Not only will they be alerted by professionals when important changes occur, but the consumers are able to access their credit reports on a daily basis. This can be extremely helpful when you are disputing certain items on your credit report and you want to check frequently to see if there is any progress.

Before you enroll in a service that monitors your credit, think about what you are trying to accomplish. If your goal is to make sure there are no unauthorized changes to your credit file, you may want to consider freezing your credit instead. However, if you want to be able to frequently monitor your credit because of changes you are making, you may find that credit monitoring is worth the money.