We all need to be cautious with our personal and financial information. Keeping account numbers of any kind private and shredding papers you are no longer in need of are good steps to take. However, they are not fool-proof and even when we are as careful as we can be, a crafty thief can still gain our personal information.
To help in the fight, the credit union is offering a new service to our members. It is called AlertMe, and is a consumer credit monitoring service that will provide information to help stop credit fraud and identity theft.
For a small fee of $4.25 per month AlertMe provides daily credit monitoring. By scanning your credit daily, AlertMe is a first line defense against discrepancies that may affect your credit worthiness. When a significant change such as a new account, change of address or delinquent account is detected on your credit file, AlertMe will send you an e-mail notification. AlertMe also provides the steps you should take if you believe the activity could be fraudulent.
Included with your subscription to the AlertMe service is up to $25,000 in identity theft insurance. This insurance would help cover out-of-pocket expenses incurred to restore your identity and repair your credit.
Your subscription will also include optional online access to credit reports and scores. For a minimal fee, you can easily and quickly request a credit report and score anytime you like. In addition to being able to view or print the credit report at the time you request it, AlertMe keeps a historical copy of each credit report you request through the service. If there has been no significant credit activity in the past 30 days, AlertMe will send you an e-mail letting you know there has been no activity and that your credit continues to be monitored. You will also receive a yearly reminder and instructions on ordering the free credit reports available through the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act).
To sign up for AlertMe please click here