Sites Offering ‘Free’ Credit Reports: Worth Consumer Consideration? potx

SitesOffering‘Free’CreditReport s:
WorthConsumerCon sideration?
Reviewof24SitesShowsPotentialforConfusion
andUnnecessaryExpenses
byRobertN.Mayer,Ph.D.
TylerBarrick
UniversityofUtah
July3,2007
ConsumerReportsWebWatch
101TrumanAvenue
Yonkers,NY107031057
Tel.:914.378.2600
www.ConsumerWebWatch.org
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TABLEOFCONTENTS
EXECUTIVESUMMARY ________________________________________________________3
RecommendationstoConsumers_____________________________________________4
Credits __________________________________________________________________5
ABOUTCONSUMERREPORTSWEBWATCH______________________________________6
INTRODUCTION_______________________________________________________________7
KeyDefinitions____________________________________________________________7
ThePotentialProblemsWithAlternativeSites____________________________________7
ArrivingatAlternativeSites __________________________________________________8
METHODOLOGY______________________________________________________________9
Sample __________________________________________________________________9
Questionnaire _____________________________________________________________9
DataCollection ___________________________________________________________10
MAJORFINDINGS ____________________________________________________________10
ThreeBasicChoices ______________________________________________________10
FewActualSellers________________________________________________________11
Figure1:RelationshipsAmongWebSites______________________________________13

FreeUseoftheTerm“Free” ________________________________________________15
Table1:UseoftheTerm“Free”______________________________________________16
PotentiallyImportantOmissions______________________________________________17
FACTActRights__________________________________________________________17
Table2:SiteDisclosureofFACTActRights ____________________________________18
TypeofCreditScore(s) ____________________________________________________19
ChargingandCancellationProcedures________________________________________19
PrivacyandSecurityPractices_______________________________________________20
PurchaseExperiences _____________________________________________________20
CreditScores____________________________________________________________21
CancellationProcedures ___________________________________________________21
CONCLUSIONS______________________________________________________________22
BestPractices____________________________________________________________22
RecommendationstoConsumers____________________________________________23
StudyLimitationsandRemainingQuestions ____________________________________24
REFERENCES_______________________________________________________________25
Appendix1:FinalCreditReportSampleandSearchEngineSou rce __________________27
AppendixII:Questionnaire ____________________________________________________28
AppendixIII: InterraterReliability ______________________________________________35
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EXECUTIVESUMMARY
StudyPurpose
ThisreportexaminesWebsitesthatofferconsumerspaidaccesstotheircreditreportsincombination
withcreditscores,creditmonitoring,and/oridentitytheftinsurance.Thesesitesarealternativesto
annualcreditreport.com,createdasaresultoftheFairandAccurateCreditTransactionActof2003
(FACTA),whichentitlesconsumerstoobtain,onceayear,afreecopyoftheircreditreportsfromeachof
thethreemajorcreditreportingbureaus–Equifax,Experian,andTransunion.
KeyDefinitions:
Acreditreportisadocumentgeneratedbyacreditbureau,suchasEquifax,Experian,
orTransunion.Itshowsaperson’screditorrepaymenthistoryovertime,basedondata

frombanks,merchantsandothercreditors.
•Acreditscoreisoneofseveralnumericalsummarymeasures,oftenrangingfrom300
(negative)to850(positive),oftheinformationcontainedinaconsumer'screditreport.
•Creditmonitoringisapaidservicethatalertsconsumerswheninquiriesaremadeinto
theircreditreports,orthecontentoftheirreportschanges.Sometypesofqueries,such
asthosemadebyabankwhenaconsumerseekstoopenalineofcredit,canactually
affectthecreditscore.Otherinquiries,suchasfrommarketersseekinginformationto
makeoffersofcredit,donotaffectthescore.
The“alternative”sitestoannualcreditreport.commarketthemselvesaggressivelytoconsumers.
Consumerswhoknowinglyusethealternativesitesasanadjuncttoannualcreditreport.commayfind
theirservicesvaluable.However,consumersusingthealternativesitesbecauseofconfusionabout
annualcreditreport.comanditsalternativesmayenduppayingneedlesslyforsomethingtheyareentitled
bylawtoreceiveforfree,orpayingmorethannecessaryforcreditscores.Alternativesites(e.g.,
www.annualcreditreports.com)havebeencriticizedforblurringthedistinctionbetween
annualcreditreport.comandothersites.ThisresearchexaminesawiderarrayofWebsitepracticesthat
mayperpetuateconsumerconfusion,orcauseproblemsevenwhenconsumersunderstandtheyare
payingforservicesbeyondthoseprovidedbyannualcreditreport.com.
MajorFindings
1.Basedonananalysisof58offersmadeon24alternativesites,weconcludethattheenticementof
freecreditreportsandfreecreditscoresisanintegralpartofthemarketingofcreditrelatedservices.
Themostcommonoffer(57%ofthe58offersanalyzed)providesoneormorefreecreditreportsandone
ormorefreecreditscoreswiththepurchaseofacreditmonitoringservice.Thesecondmostcommon
offer(15%oftheremaining)involvesaccesstoafreecreditscoreswiththepurchaseofthreecredit
reports. Someoftheseusesoftheterm“free”maybeinconsistentwiththeregulatoryguidelinesofthe
FederalTradeCommissionandtheselfregulatorystandardsoftheBetterBusinessBureau.
2.WhilethereappeartobeanabundanceofWebsitesofferingcreditreportsforfree,oraspartofa
multiserviceofferthatincludessomethingforfree,theindustryisfarmoreconcentratedthanitfirst
appears.Ofthe24sitesanalyzed,ninewereownedbyorcloselyconnectedtoTransunionandeight
wereownedbyorotherwisecloselyconnectedtoExperian.Thisconcentratedmarketstructurehas
potentiallynegativeconsequencesforcompetitionandaspectsofmarketperformance(e.g.,price,quality,

choice,andinnovation).
3. Many Web site names and URLs contain the word “free” and/or are similar enough to
annualcreditreport.comtopossiblycauseconsumerconfusion.Thoseusingtheword“free”include:
• free3bureaucreditreport.com
• freebiecreditreport.com
• freecreditreports.com
• freecreditreportsinstantly.com
• freecreditreport.com
• thefreecreditreportsource.com.
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Thosesimilartoannualcreditreport.cominclude:
• creditreport.com
• creditreporting.com
• nationalcreditreport.com
4.Inadditiontotheuseoftheword“free”in WebsitenamesandURLs,thewordisusedliberallyon
most Websitesstudied.Includingthenineusesoftheword“free”toindicateaWebsite’sname,there
were312usesoftheword“free”acrossthe24sitehomepages.(SeeTable1.) Thisisanaverageof13
usesperhomepageandamedianof8usesperhomepage.Therewere,ofcourse,manyadditional
usesoftheword“free”onpageslinkedtothehomepage.Whilesomeoftheseusesdonotseem
designedtoattractconsumerpurchases,themajorityclearlyare.
5.Onewayinwhich Websitescanavoidbeingconfusedwithannualcreditreport.comistoprominently
disclosetheexistenceandpurposeofannualcreditreport.comtoconsumers.Fourteenofthe24sites
indicatedtheexistenceofannualcreditreport.com,eightofwhichincludedthisinformationontheirhome
page. (SeeTable2.) Someofthedisclosureswereconspicuousbyanyreasonabledefinition,but
severalsitesusedsmallprintand/orlettercolorsthatdidnotcontrastsharplywiththeirbackground.
Furthermore,somedisclosuressubtlydiminishthevalueofthereportsobtainedfrom
annualcreditreport.comwiththeexpression“allfreecreditreportsarenotthesame”or“allfreecredit
reportsarenotcreatedequal.”
6.Mostofferscontainoneormorefreecreditscoreswhenacreditreportorcreditmonitoringserviceis
purchased. Manyofferswereimpreciseabouttheexactnatureofthecreditscore(s)tobeprovided,that

is,whetherconsumerswouldbereceivingthewellestablishedFICOscoreprovidedbyFairIsaac
Corporationoranyofahalfdozenotherscoresassociatedwithoneofthethreemajorcreditreporting
agencies(e.g.,VantageScore). Thisinformationwasoftennotavailableuntilafteraconsumerhadmade
apurchaseorsignedupforafreetrialofaservice.Eventhen,consumersmightnotfullyunderstandthe
differencesamongthevariouscreditscores.
7.Sitesgenerallydidanexcellentjobofdisclosingprivacyandsecuritypolicies.Thirdpartyicons,such
asVeriSign,TRUSTe,andBBBOnLine,werecommonlyusedtoaddcredibilitytothesepolicies.
8. Some Websitesdidagoodjobofdisclosingtheirchargingandcancellationpolicies,butothersdidnot.
SeveralWebsitesstatedexplicitlynochargeswouldbemadeagainstaperson’screditcarduntilafter
theexpirationofanytrialperiod,whileothersiteswereambiguousorunclear. Similarly,somesites
providedconspicuousandclearinformationabouthowtocanceltrialperiodsandservices.Others
providedonlyageneralcustomerservicephonenumber. Asmallscalepurchasingtestdemonstrated
thatcompaniesdidanexcellentjobofhonoringconsumercancellationrequests.However,some
cancellationprocedureswerecumbersome,orlikelytoleaveconsumerswonderingwhethera
cancellationprocesshadbeensuccessful.
RecommendationstoConsumers
Forconsumersrelativelyunfamiliarwithcreditreports,scores,andmonitoring,werecommend
unbundlingtheseservicesandproceedingincrementally. Mostconsumersshouldbeginbyexercising
theirrightundertheFACTActtoobtainfreecopiesoftheirthreecreditreports.Thethreereportscanbe
obtainedsimultaneously,butmanyexpertsadvisethataccessbestaggeredoverseveralmonths.For
consumerscuriousabouttheircreditscores,oneormorecanbepurchasedatlowcostwhenaccessing
reportsatannualcreditreport.com.Consumersshouldconsiderpurchasingcreditmonitoringservices
onlyafterreviewingthecontentsoftheirfreecreditreports,andperhapsoneormorecreditscores.
Securityfreezesoncreditreports,providedbylawinamajorityofstates,maybealessexpensiveand
moreeffectivealternativetocreditmonitoringservicesforconsumerswhoareparticularlyconcerned
aboutpreventingidentitytheft.
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Methodology
Thesampleof24 Websitesexaminedinthisstudywasobtainedbyenteringthephrase“freecredit
report”inthesearchenginesofGoogleandYahoo! Foreachsearchengine,thefirstteneligibleorganic

(i.e.,nonsponsored)andfirstteneligiblesponsoredsitesweretaken,yieldingfourlistsofteneach.After
eliminatingsitesthatappearedonmorethanoneofthefourlists,24uniquesitesremained.
Aquestionnairewasdevelopedforthesiteanalysis,usingthefiveConsumerReports WebWatch
Guidelines forWebsitecredibilityasastaringpoint.DatawerecollectedduringmidDecember,2006.
Dataforeachsitewascodedindependentlybytworesearchers,afterwhichanydiscrepancieswere
reconciled. ServicesfromsixWebsiteswerepurchasedbyaConsumersUnion(CU)employeeinlate
December,2006.
CREDITS
ThisprojectwaswrittenanddirectedbyRobertN.Mayer,Ph.D.,aconsultantandadvisertoConsumer
ReportsWebWatch.MayerisaprofessorintheDepartmentofFamilyandConsumerStudiesatthe
UniversityofUtah.TylerBarrick,agraduatestudentattheUniversityofUtah,assistedMayerwith
researchandtesting. TheprojectwasfundedbyConsumerReportsWebWatch.Thereportwasedited
byJørgenWouters,WebWatch’sseniorproducer,andBeauBrendler, WebWatch’sdirector.Some
testingwasperformedbyaConsumerReportsWebWatchstaffemployee. WebWatch,ConsumersUnion
andtheUniversityofUtaharenotaffiliatedwithanyonlinecreditservicereviewedinthisstudy.
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ABOUTCONSUMERREPORTSWEBWATCH
ConsumerReportsWebWatchservesasadailyresourceofunbiasedandtrustworthyinformation,using
theprovenmethodsofConsumerReportsandotherindependentlyderivedresearchmethods. The
WebWatchresearchagendaincludeshealth,financialservices,newsandinformationsites,children’s
sitesandgeneralissuesofconcerntoconsumersontheWeb,suchasprivacy,spywareandinformation
security.
ConsumerReportsWebWatchatConsumersUnion,thenonprofitpublisherofConsumerReports
magazineandConsumerReports.org,acknowledgessupportofThePewCharitableTrusts,theJohnS.
andJamesL.KnightFoundation,andtheOpenSocietyInstituteasinstrumentaltoitsfoundingandfirst
fiveyearsofsuccess.WebWatch'sinvestigativereports,articlesandnewsareavailabletothegeneral
publicat
WebWatchacceptsnoadvertisingorcorporatesupportwhatsoever. WebWatchservesasaspecial
unpaidadvisertotheStopBadware.orgprojectofTheBerkmanCenterforInternet&SocietyatHarvard
LawSchoolandtheOxfordInternetInstitute.WebWatchdirectorBeauBrendlerisamemberoftheAt

LargeAdvisoryCommitteetotheInternetCorporationforAssigningNamesandNumbers(ICANN).
Page7
INTRODUCTION
StudyPurpose
ThepurposeofthisreportistoexaminetheoperationofWebsites–otherthanthegovernment
sanctionedannualcreditreport.com–thatofferconsumers“free”accesstotheircreditreports.Asa
resultoftheFairandAccurateCreditTransactionActof2003(FACTA),allconsumersnowhavetheright
torequestandobtain,onceayear,acopyoftheircreditreportsfromeachofthethreemajorcredit
reportingbureaus–Equifax,Experian,andTransunion.PriortoFACTA,consumershadtherightto
obtainafreecopyoftheircreditreportonlyunderalimitedsetofconditions:(1)theyweredeniedcredit,
atleastinpart,basedontheinformationcontainedinacreditreport;(2)theywereunemployedand
wouldapplyforunemploymentwithin60days;(3)theyreceivedpublicassistance;(4)theyhadbeena
victimofidentitytheftandplacedafraudalertontheirfile;or(5)believedtheirfilecontainedinaccurate
informationduetofraudulentactivity(ConsumersUnion,undated).
KeyDefinitions:
Acreditreportisadocumentgeneratedbyacreditbureau,suchasEquifax,Experian,
orTransunion.Itshowsaperson’screditorrepaymenthistoryovertime,basedondata
frombanks,merchantsandothercreditors.
•Acreditscoreisoneofseveralnumericalsummarymeasures,oftenrangingfrom300
(negative)to850(positive),oftheinformationcontainedinaconsumer'screditreport.
•Creditmonitoringisapaidservicethatalertsconsumerswheninquiriesaremadeinto
theircreditreports,orthecontentoftheirreportschanges.Sometypesofqueries,such
asthosemadebyabankwhenaconsumerseekstoopenalineofcredit,canactually
affectthecreditscore.Otherinquiries,suchasfrommarketersseekinginformationto
makeoffersofcredit,donotaffectthescore.
TherightunderFACTAtofreecreditreportswasimplementedaccordingtoaphasedtimetablebetween
December2004andSeptember2005.BetweenDecember1,2004andDecember1,2006,
approximately52millioncreditfileswereprovidedtoconsumersforfreebythethreemajorcredit
reportingagenciesviatheannualcreditreport.comWebsite(FederalRegister,2006).Simultaneously,an
unknownnumberofconsumershavevisitedalternative Websitesandobtainedcreditreports in

conjunctionwiththepurchaseofothercreditrelatedservices,typically,creditscoresand/orcredit
monitoringservices.Thisreportfocusesonthesealternativesitesandexaminestheiroffersto
consumers. ThereportfindssubstantialvariationinthetransparencyoftheseWebsitesandinthevalue
theypotentiallyoffertoconsumers.
ThePotentialProb lemswithAlternativeSites
Isthereanythingwrongwithsitesthatprovideanalternativetoannualcreditreport.comasawayof
obtainingfreecreditreports?Notnecessarily.Mostofthesealternativesitesofferconsumersafree
creditreportinconjunctionwithservicesthatcannotbeobtainedfromannualcreditreport.com.Thevalue
ofthesealternativesiteswillvaryfromconsumertoconsumerdependingonhowmuchothercredit
relatedservicessuchascreditscores,creditmonitoring,andidentitytheftinsuranceareworthto
them.Yet,theexistenceofthesealternativesitesmaycauseproblemsforconsumersandcostthem
money:
1.Consumersunawareoftheirrighttoobtainfreecreditreportsfromannualcreditreport.commaybuy
expensiveservices fromothersites,believingtheyaregettingacreditreportforfree.
2.Consumersunawarethattheycanpurchasecreditscoresatannualcreditreport.commayspendmore
thannecessarywhenofferedafreecreditscorebundledwiththepurchaseofcreditreports.
3.Consumerswhopatronizealternativesiteswiththeintentionofcancelingservicesbeforeafreetrial
expiresmayincurunwantedchargesiftheyforgettocancelwithintheallottedtimeorencounter
unexpectedbarrierstocanceling.
Page8
Thenumberofconsumerswhohaveencounteredtheseandotherproblemsisunknown,butapparently
millionsofconsumershavetransactedwithsitesotherthanannualcreditreport.com.
FreeCreditReport.com,ownedbyExperian,invitesconsumersto“joinover20millionconsumerswho
havealreadycheckedtheirFREEExperianCreditReport”andtorememberthat"allfreecreditreports
arenotcreatedequal.”Similarly,CreditReport.comurgesconsumersto“trustthenamethathasprovided
millionsofconsumersjustlikeyouwiththeirfreecreditreports."Thepotentialexistsforatleastsomeof
thesetransactionstohavebeenbasedonconsumerignoranceandconfusion.
Intworeportspublishedin2005(Dixon,2005a,2005b),theWorldPrivacyForumbroughttolightthe
existenceofovertwohundredWebdomainsthatresembledtheofficialannualcreditreport.comsiteor
closelymisspelledvariations.Theauthorofthereportsreferredtositessuchasannualceditreport.com

andannualcreditcheck.comas“imposterdomains”and“impostersites,”tohighlightthepossibilityof
consumersendingupatunwantedWebsites.
TheU.S.FederalTradeCommission,theagencyinchargeofimplementingandenforcingFACTA,has
alsorecognizedthepossibilityofconsumerconfusion.TheCommission’sconsumereducationeffortsare
designedtopreventdeception.Forinstance,oneoftheFTC’sWebpages( />urgesconsumerstobewaryofsearchengineresultsusingphrasessuchas“freecreditreport”or“free
creditscore.”TheCommission’s Websitealsotellsconsumersitwantstohearfromthemiftheypaidfor
whattheythoughtwasafreeannualcreditreport.
TheCommission’sstrongestmethodofdeterringandpunishingconsumerdeceptionisthrough
prosecutionofindividualcompanies.In2005,theCommissionsettledchargesthatConsumerinfo.com,a
companyownedbyExperian,haddeceptivelymarketed(priortothepassageofFACTA)“freecredit
reports”bynotadequatelydisclosingthatconsumersautomaticallywouldbesignedupforacreditreport
monitoringserviceandcharged$79.95iftheydidn’tcancelwithin30days.Insettlingthecharges,the
defendantagreedtopayalmostamilliondollarsinrestitution(U.S.FederalTradeCommission,2005).In
2007,Consumerinfo.compaidanadditional$300,000tosettlechargesthatithadviolatedthetermsofits
2005agreementbyfailing“todiscloseadequatelythatconsumerswhosignedupwouldbeautomatically
enrolledinacreditmonitoringprogramandcharged$79.95"(U.S.FederalTradeCommission,2007).
Despitetheseprecedentsofenforcement,thisreportshowssomequestionablepracticespersist.
ArrivingatAlternativeSites
Giventheexistenceoffreecreditreportsatthegovernmentsanctionedsite,howmightconsumersend
upatasiteotherthanannualcreditreport.com?Thejourneycanbeeitherbusinessinitiatedor
consumerinitiated.Televisioncommercials,popupadvertisementsandlinksonWebsites,and
unsolicitedemailarethreeways Websitesofferingfreecreditreportsandscorestrytoattractcustomers.
Forexample,the Websitefreecreditreport.comwasthefifteenthlargestspenderononlineadvertisingin
November2005($4.4million).Thisoccurredapproximatelythesametimeconsumerswerefirstbeing
offeredatrulyfreecreditreportundertheFACTAct(ITFactsAdvertising,2006).AsrecentlyasMarch
2007,ExperianwasthetopInternetadvertiser,spending$90millioninamonth(ITFactsAdvertising,
2007). Unfortunately,itisnotpossibletospecifyhowmuchofthisamountwasspentadvertising
Experiancompaniesthatoffercreditreports,suchasfreecreditreport.comandconsumerinfo.com,as
opposedtocompanieslikelowermybills.comandpricegrabber.com,alsoownedbyExperian.
Consumers,canalsoinitiatetheprocess. Evenwhenaconsumerknowsasiteexistsatwhichfree

copiesofcreditreportscanbeobtained,heorshemaynotknowtheexactURL.Today,ifaperson
entersaphraselike“freecreditreport”inamajorsearchenginelikeYahoo!orGoogle,
annualcreditreport.comwillbethefirstitemintheorganic(i.e.,nonsponsored)listofresults,buta
consumermightbedistractedbythemanysurroundingsitesinboththesponsoredandorganicresults.
Anotherwayinwhichaconsumermighttraveltoasiteotherthanannualcreditreport.comisbytypinga
URLlikecreditreport.com,creditreports.comorfreecreditreport.com. Allthreeofferconsumersavariety
ofwaystoobtaina“free”creditreport. Freecreditreport.commentionstheexistenceof
annualcreditreport.com,butitimmediatelydiscouragesconsumersfromvisitingthegovernment
sanctionedsitebystatingthat“allfreecreditreportsarenotcreatedequal.”
Page9
Inshort,thereareseveralpathwaysbywhichconsumerslookingforafreecreditreportcanarriveata
siteotherthanannualcreditreport.com.Thegoaloftheresearchdescribedbelowistoanalyzethe
contentofthealternative Websitesconsumersmightreachintentionally,orunintentionallywhen
searchingforfreecreditreportsonline.
METHODOLOGY
Theresearchmethodologyusedinthisstudyisavariantoftheapproachusedinseveralother
investigationsofWebsites,includingstudiessponsoredbyConsumerReports WebWatch(Buckleitner,
2006;McGee,2005;Scribbins,2002).Thebasicapproachistovisitandtestasamplingofthemost
widelyusedWebsitesinagivenareaofconsumerinterest–inthiscase,sitesthatsellcreditreports,
creditscores,creditmonitoring,andrelatedservices.Theapproachistomatchascloselyaspossible
thebehavioroftheaverageconsumerwhoisconsideringatransactionwithagiven Website.
Sample
Thesearchterm“freecreditreport”wasenteredonNovember17,2006inthetwomostwidelyused
Internetsearchengines,GoogleandYahoo!Then,foreachsearchengine,thefirstteneligiblesites
weretakenfromtheorganicsearchresultsplusthefirstteneligiblesponsoredsites.Aneligiblesitewas
definedasonethatofferedafreecreditreportorscoreaspartofacommercialservice,excluding
annualcreditreport.com.Thismeanteliminatingthreesites(FTC.gov,PrivacyRights.org,vcr.org)that
pointedconsumerstoannualcreditreport.comanddidnotmentionanyofthealternativesites.Italso
meantdeletingsixsitesthatwere“pureportals”or“linkfarms,”thatis,siteswhosesolefunctionwasto
providenumerousandunrankedlinkstosites(notnecessarilyincludingannualcreditreport.com)where

purportedlyfreecreditreportscouldbeobtainedfromcommercialsites.Thesesiteswere:2muslims.com,
annualcreditreport1.com,consumerfinanceportal.com,cardratings.com,finance.yahoo.com,and
hotboards.com.
Aswouldbeexpected,therewereseveralduplicationsamongthefortyeligiblesites.Therewasoverlap
notonlybetweenthetwosearchenginesbutalsobetweensponsoredandorganicresults.Forexample,
thesitefreecreditreport.comappearedonallfourlists.Afterretainingonlyonesiteamongduplicates,the
finalsampleconsistedoftwentyfour Websites(seeAppendix1).
Questionnaire
Aquestionnaire(seeAppendix2)wasdevelopedtomeasurethegeneralfeaturesofeachoftheselected
sitesaswellasthespecificcharacteristicsofitsofferstoconsumers.Theselectionofthegeneralsite
featureswasdriven,inpart,bythefiveConsumerReports WebWatchGuidelines forWebsitecredibility.
Amongtheseguidelines,themostrelevanttositesofferingcreditserviceswereasite’sidentity(e.g.,
disclosureofownershiporparentcompany),customerservice(e.g.,clearandconspicuousdisclosureof
costsandproceduresforcancelingmemberships),andprivacy(e.g.,providingconsumerswithcontrol
regardingfuturecontactsinitiatedbythesite,itsaffiliates,orthirdparties).
Beyondthesegeneralfeatures,thecharacteristicsofasite’screditrelatedofferswereanalyzed:what
specificservicesweremadeavailabletoconsumers,atwhatprice,underwhatconditions,inassociation
withwhichclaimsorendorsements?Wepaidspecialattentiontotheuseoftheterm“free.”
Thequestionnairewasbasedonamodelofaconsumerwhowas“windowshopping,”thatis,tryingto
gatherasmuchinformationaspossiblewithoutactuallysigningupforaservicethatprovidescredit
reportsandotherrelatedservices.Ourfictionalconsumerwaswillingtoprovideeach Websitewitha
name,geographicaddress,telephonenumber,and/oremail,butdatacollectiontypicallyhaltedwhenthe
shopperwasaskedtoprovideacreditcardnumberorsocialsecuritynumber. Insomeinstances,the
windowshopperwasabletoaccessasite’sfullsetoftermsandconditions.Inothercases,this
informationwasnotavailablewithoutmakingapurchase.
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Thequestionnairewaspretestedandrefinedbyapplyingittosix WebsitesthatappearedontheGoogle
orYahoo!searchresultsbutbelowtheofficialsampleof24sites.Thefirstthreesiteswereusedtorefine
thequestionnaireperse,thatis,makingsurethatthequestionsmadesenseandtheanswercategories
werecomprehensive.Twoadditionalsitesnotincludedintheofficialsamplewereusedtogaugeand

improveconsistencybetweenthejudgmentsofthetwodatecoders. Finally,asixthpretestsitewasused
toformallymeasureintercoderagreement.(SeeAppendix3oncodingforadiscussionofintercoder
reliability.)
DataCollection
InitialdatacollectiontookplacebetweenDecember5and18,2006. Twouniversitybasedresearchers
beganbycodingelevenuniquesites,thatis,twentytwoofthetwentyfoursites. Next,eachresearcher
codedthetworemaininguncodedsitesandinterjudgeconsistencywasmoreformallymeasured.(See
Appendix3foradiscussionofintercoderreliability.)Afteradiscussionofthefewdiscrepancies,each
researchercodedtheelevensitesnotyetexamined.Throughthisprocedure,eachofthe24siteswas
codedtwice.
ActualpurchasesfromsixWebsitesofcreditrelatedservicesweremadeandrecordedbyathird
researcheraConsumersUnionemployeebetweenDecember21,2006andJanuary2,2007.
Researchersintendedtopurchasefromalargernumberofsites,butbecauseoftheextensive
interconnectionsamongthesubjects,itwasnotpossibletobuyfromsomesitesafterpurchasingfrom
another.Thirtydaysaftertheinitialpurchase,eachservicewascancelled.Thesixpurchasesiteswere:
credit.com,creditreporting.com,identityguard.com,myfico.com,nationalcreditreport.com,and
thefreecreditreportsource.com.
MAJORFINDINGS
1.ThreeBasicChoices
Across24sitesstudied,therewasatotalof58offers.Themajorityofsites(16outof24)containedthree
offers,atleastoneofwhichinvolvedafreecreditreport. Twositesboretwooffers;sixsitesonlyone.
(Threesitescontainedmorethanthreecreditrelatedoffers,butwecodedonlythefirstthreeoffersona
given Website.)
Theoffersonthetwentyfoursitesvaryindetail,butthemajority(51)fellintooneofthreebroad
categories:
A.Buythreecreditreportsandgetonecreditscoreforfree,sometimeswiththeoptionofbuying
additionalcreditscores(8offers)
B.Buycreditreportsandscores,withnothingofferedforfree(10offers)
C.Receiveoneormorefreecreditreportsand/oroneormorefreecreditscoreswhenenrollingina
creditmonitoringservice,oftenwithafreetrialperiod(33offers)

Theadvantageofthefirsttypeofoffer(OfferA)istheconvenienceofhavingallthreecreditreports
generatedatthesametimeand,accordingtosomeoftheWebsites,inan“easytoread”format.The
approximatecostofthisconvenienceisthepriceoftheservice(typically$30$40)minusthecostof
obtainingacreditscoreseparately.Thesescoresareavailablewhenaconsumerobtainsacreditreport
viatheannualcreditreport.comsitefor$5.95(fromExperianforaVantageScore),$7.95(fromTransunion
foraVantageScore),and$7.95(fromEquifaxforaFICOScore).Sothecostoftheconvenienceisabout
$25sinceonecanobtainallthreereportsforfreeandbuyascoreforlessthan$10.Someoffersinclude
theoptionofpaying$5of$10moreforallthreecreditscores,butthecostoftheconvenienceisstill
about$20.
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Thesecondtypeofoffer(OfferB)doesn’tincludeanythingforfree,butitcomesintwovariations.Oneis
buyingasinglecreditscoreandcreditreportfromthesamecompany.Theothervariationisbuyingall
threescoresandallthreereports.Thefirstvariationtypicallyispricedat$14.95butdoesn’tofferanyreal
conveniencewhencomparedtogoingtoannualcreditreport.comandthenobtainingafreecreditreport
andbuyingacreditscorefor$5.95$7.95.Essentially,theconsumerispaying$7fornotusing
annualcreditreport.com.(Thiswouldnotbethecasewhenaconsumerhasalreadyexercisedhisorher
annualrightsundertheFACTActwithinthelastyear,inwhichcaseafreeversionofthecreditreport
wouldnotbeavailableforseveralmoremonths.)ThevariationofoffertypeBthatinvolvesmultiple
reportsandscoresistypicallypricedat$39.95,althoughwedidfindoneofferfor$29.95. Aconsumer
canbuythesameinformationforhalfthepricebygoingtoannualcreditreport.comandbuyingthecredit
scoresofferedbyeachofthethreemajorcreditbureaus.
OfferCisbyfarthemostcommonoffer.Itentailssigningup,usuallywithafreeonemonthtrialperiod,
foracreditmonitoringservice.Thesecreditmonitoringofferstypicallyincludeatleastonefreecredit
scoreandatleastonefreecreditreport.Afterthetrialperiodexpiresandtheservicebeginsonapaid
basis,acustomercanaccesstheirscoresandreportswithoutrestriction.Sixofthe33offerprovidefree
creditreportsbutnoscores,whiletheremainingofferprovidesacreditscorebutnoreports.Credit
monitoringservicesaretypicallypricedonamonthlybasis,withchargesrangingfrom$9.95to$12.95for
onereportandcorrespondingscore.Consumerspayatypicalfeeof$19.95permonthforcredit
monitoringinconjunctionwithallthreereportsandscores.
Avigilantconsumerwhowantstominimizehisorherfinancialoutlaycanenrollin,butthencancelwithin

thedesignatedperiod,oneofthecreditmonitoringservicesthatprovidesallthreecreditreportsand
correspondingscores.Anothersavvystrategyistosignupforatrialperiodfrommorethanonesitebut
staggeredacrossseveralmonths.Onepaysnothingunderthesescenariosaslongaseachserviceis
cancelledwithintheallottedperiodoftime.(Thereisalimittothesestrategies,however,asrevealedby
thepurchasingexercisedescribedbelow.)
Iftheconsumerforgetstocancelbeforetheendofafreetrialperiodordeliberatelychoosesnottocancel,
thevalueofthecreditmonitoringserviceisdifficulttoestimateandwouldvarysubstantiallyamong
individualconsumers.Forapersonwhowantstoviewhisorhercreditreportsandscoresonamonthly
basis,$19.95iscertainlylessexpensivethanbuyingtheseservicesseparately.Forapersonwhoneeds
tocheckhisorhercreditscoresandreportsinfrequently,itmaybelessexpensivetostartwith
annualcreditreport.comand,whenneeded,buyonetimeaccesstoreportsandscoresfor$3040.
2.FewActualSellers
Atfirstglance,thereappeartobedozens,ifnothundreds,ofWebsitesotherthan
annualcreditreport.comthatofferconsumersvariouswaystoobtainfreecopiesoftheircreditreports.On
closerinspection,however,thereisfarlessvariety.DespitedifferingURLsandWebsitenames,many
sitesaremembersofoneoftwo“families”headedbyeitherTransunionorExperian.
Ofthe24sitesexaminedinthisstudy,nineweremembersoftheTransunionfamily.Eightwerepartof
theExperianfamily.Insomecases,TransunionorExperianownedaparticularsite,andthisownership
relationshipwasclearlydescribedonthe Website. Forexample,the Websiteofconsumerinfo.com
prominentlydisplaysthephrase“AnExperian.”Otherdisclosuresstronglyimplyownershipwithoutstating
itexplicitly.Truecredit.comconspicuouslyprints“ByTransUnion”atthetopofitshomepage.
Creditreport.comdisplaysinfaintletteringatthebottomofitshomepage:“CreditReport.comisa
servicemarkofMightyNet,Inc.”
Inmanyinstances,therelationshipbetweenWebsitesappearedtobeoneofserviceproviderandclient.
Asanexample,speedycreditreports.comdisclosesthatits“ServicesareprovidedbyTrueCredit.” As
anotherexample,identityguard.comstatesthatits“identitytheftandcustomerservices[are]providedby
Intersections,Inc.,America’sforemostfraudprotectionandsecurityorganization.” Inmostcases,the
exactnatureoftherelationshipbetweenWebsitesissomewhatambiguousduetotheabsenceofexplicit
ownershipstatements.However,thereareseveralstrongindicatorsofinterconnectionsbetweenand
Page12

among Websites,including: identicalsignuppagesforservices,informationenteredatonesitecoming
upautomaticallyonanothersite,andtheinabilitytopurchaseoneserviceafterhavingpurchasedanother
fromthesamefamily.
Figure1showsanestimateoftherelationshipsamongthe24sitesinthisstudy. Afewofthe
relationshipsare“strong,”inthesensethatanownershiprelationshipiseitherstatedorstronglyimplied.
Themajorityofrelationshipsare“weak,”notwellexplainedontheWebsitesandprobablybasedona
servicerelationshipratherthanownershipofonesitebyanother. Mostimportantisunderstandingthe
relationshipsamongtheTransunionandExperian“families.”
Page13
Experian.com
Consumer
Info.com
FreeCredit
Report.com
Credit
Reporting
.com
eloan.com
Freebie
CreditReport
.com
lending
tree.com
moving
links.com
FIGURE1:RelationshipsAmongWebSites
Note:TheabovemapshowsWebsitesthatareownedbyotherWebsitesorareotherwise
affiliatedwith otherentities.GraycellsarecompaniesbutnotWebsites.
Transunion.com
TrueCredit.com

PrivacyMatters
.com
Free3Bureau
Credit
Report.com
FreeCredit
ReportsInstantly.com
speedycredit
reports.com
spendonlife
.com
freecredit
reports.com
Credit.com
MightyNet
CreditReport.com
TheFreeCreditReport
Source.com
Intersections
Id entityGuard.com
NationalCreditReport
.com
LexingtonLaw
.com
Equifax
.com
MyFico
.com
Page14
Shouldconsumersbeconcernedthatmorethantwothirdsofthe Websitesinoursampleareownedby,

orcloselyaffiliatedwith,twoofthreemajorcreditreportingagencies?Severalobjectionsarepossible.
First,muchofthemarketingofservicesfromWebsitesthatserveasalternativesto
annualcreditreport.comoriginatefromthecompaniesthatare,bylaw,supposedtobemakingiteasyfor
consumerstoexercisetheirrighttoobtainfreecreditreports.Certainly,themajorityoftheoffersmadeto
consumersonalternativesitesgobeyondwhatconsumerscanobtainfromannualcreditreport.com(i.e.,
freecreditreportsonceperyearandinexpensivecreditscores). Shouldthemajorcreditreporting
agencies,alreadyrequiredbyFACTAtodispensefreecreditreports,usethelureoffreecreditreportsto
sellserviceslikecreditmonitoring?Shouldtheybesellingcreditreportswiththeincentiveoffreecredit
scores?
Further:AlargenumberofseeminglyindependentWebsitesarecloselyconnectedtothesamecredit
reportingagency.Aswithanyindustry,concentratedownershiporcontrolreducescompetitionand
therebycanundercutincentivesforpriceandqualitycompetition.Also,consumerswholiketo
comparisonshopamongWebsitesmaywastetimeandeffortcomparingsitesthatappeartobe
competitors,butinrealityofferidenticalornearlyidenticalservices.
AfinalobjectionfollowsfromtheappearancethatawiderangeofWebsitesexistthatoffercreditreport
relatedservices.Theappearanceofvarietymayencourageconsumerstobelievethereareimportant
differencesamongthecreditreportsandcreditscoresavailablefromthesesitesandleadthemto
purchaseredundantinformationfrommultiplesites.Consumersmightbeforgivenforthinkingthatby
patronizingmorethanoneofthesesitesthattheywillbeobtaininguniqueinformationfromeachone.
Moreover,theymaythinkthecreditreportsandscorestheypurchasearedifferentfrom,andsuperiorto,
thosethatcanbeobtainedviaannualcreditreport.com.
Somealternativesitestakereasonablestepstopreventconsumersfrombeingconfusedabouttheir
identity.Truecredit.com,forexample,disclosesinaconspicuousfashionitsrelationshiptoitsparent,
Transunion.DirectlybelowtheWebsitebannerofTruecreditonefindsthewords:“Broughttoyouby
Transunion.”Atthebottomofthesite’shomepage,onealsofinds(inveryfaintprint)thestatement:
“TrueCredit.comispoweredbyTransUnionInteractive,awhollyownedsubsidiaryofTransUnion.”Also,
ifoneexploresthe“AboutTrueCredit”portionoftheWebsite,onefindsthestatement:“Majorityowned
byTransunion.”
Privacymatters.comissomewhatlessclearaboutitsownership.Thesiteneverreferstoownership
explicitly,butitshomepagestates:“ServicesprovidedbyTrueCredit,Inc.”Thisphraseleavesunresolved

thenatureoftherelationshipbetweenprivacymatters.comandtruecredit.comand,inturn,Transunion.
Justastruecredit.comprovidesservicesforprivacymatters.com,privacymatters.comappearstoreceive
customers fromanumberofothersites,includingfree3bureaucreditreport.com,
freecreditreportsinstantly.com,speedycreditreports.com,andspendonlife.com.These“fourthtier”sites
offernoexplicitinformationabouttheirownership,buttheyselltheservicesofPrivacyMatters123and
eachsitestatesinconspicuously,ifatall,thatitsservicesare“providedbyTrueCredit.”Noneofthese
sitesmakesreferencetoTransunion,theownerofTruecredit.Thesepracticesdonotappeartobe
consistentwithConsumerReports WebWatchGuidelines,whichstate:
• “Sitesshouldclearlydisclosetheirownership,privateorpublic,namingtheirparentcompany”
• “Sitesshouldclearlydiscloserelevantbusinessrelationships,includingsponsoredlinkstoother
sites.”
Disclosurepersemaynotsufficetoexplainasite’sownershipandfinancialrelationships.Considerthe
caseofcreditreporting.com.Under“AboutUs,”onefinds:
Creditreporting.comisa WebsiteforEvergreenCreditReporting,Inc.,whoisaproviderofcredit
reportsandrelatedservicestousersnationwide.EvergreenisamemberoftheConsumerData
IndustryAssociation,Inc.whichistheindustryassociationinthiscountryforcreditreporting
companiesandcreditbureaus EvergreenisalsoknownasTrucreditorTrucredit.com.
Page15
EvergreenmarketsitscreditreportsasaTrucreditCreditReport.Thisisnottobeconfusedwith
Truecredit.com,thecompanyownedbyTransUnion.
Printedatthebottomofthefirstpageofcreditreporting.com’ssignupprocedureisthefollowing
statement:
ConsumerInfo.com,Inc.islicensedtousetheExperiantrademark,othertrademarksandservice
marks Theproductsonthis WebsiteareofferedbyConsumerInfo.com,Inc.
Butconsumerinfo.comisownedbyExperian.Sowhatisthenatureoftherelationshipbetween
creditreporting.comandExperian?
Whilewedidnotascertaintheprecisenatureofalloftherelationshipsamongthesistersitesinthe
TransunionandExperianfamilies,wewereabletodeterminethattheyarestrong.Oneindicationwas
thatinformationenteredintoaformatoneofthesiteswithinafamilytypicallywasdisplayed
automaticallywhenfillingoutasimilarformatasistersite.Anothersignofthestrengthofthese

interrelationsemergedduringtheexploratorypurchasingphaseofthisresearchproject(seebelowfor
moredetails).Whenwetriedtobuysimilarservicesfromtwomembersofthesamefamily,wefounditto
beimpossible.Forexample,theConsumersUnionemployeewasdeniedtheabilitytopurchasecredit
monitoringfromfreebiecreditreport.com,presumablybecauseshehadalreadypurchasedthisservice
fromitssistersite,creditreporting.com.Similarly,theCUemployeecouldnotbuyacreditmonitoring
servicefromfree3bureaucreditreport.comorspeedycreditreports.comortruecredit.com,presumably
becauseshehadalreadytransactedwiththeirsistersite,credit.com.Insomecases,theserejections
weremetwithnoexplanationatall;inothers,theCUemployeewastoldbythesitethatitssystem
indicatedthatshehadmadeapreviouspurchasefromthesiteoranotherrelatedsite.
3.FreeUseoftheTerm“Free”
Theterm“free”whenusedasamarketingtoolcanbeproblematic. Accordingly,theU.S.FederalTrade
Commission(1971)andtheBetterBusinessBureau(1994)haveissuedguidelinesontheterm’sproper
use.Whiledifferingslightlyfromoneanother,bothsetsofguidelinesemphasizethreebasicprinciples.
First,thetermsofanyfreeoffershouldbeclearlyandconspicuouslystated.Second,theprice(or
quantity)ofanyitemthatmustbepurchasedtoobtainthefreegoodshouldnotbeincreasedtocover,in
wholeorinpart,thecostofthefreeitem.Third,thefreeoffershouldbetemporary.Ifitisacontinuous
combinationoffer,thennopartofitcanreallybeconsideredfree.Whenusedproperly,theofferoffree
goodsorservicescanbe,accordingtotheFTC,“ausefulandvaluablemarketingtool.”But,theFTC
continues,“suchoffersmustbemadewithextremecaresoastoavoidanypossibilitythatconsumerswill
bemisledordeceived.”
Atthealternative Websitesstudiedhere,theterm“free”wasusedgenerously.Ontheonehand,thisis
notsurprisinggiventhatthesitesweregeneratedwiththesearchterm“freecreditreport.”Ontheother
hand,itmightnothavebeeneasytopredictthatthetermfreewouldappear312timesonthehome
pagesofthetwentyfoursites.Thevaluesamongthesitesrangedfromalowofzerousestoahighof81
usesoftheword“free.”Themediannumberofusesonthesehomepageswas8,asummarystatistic
thatdiscountstheoneortwoextremelyhighvaluescomparedtothesimpleaverageof13.
Ofthe312referencesto“free,”about40couldnotbetiedtoaspecificoffer.Thesereferenceseither
pertainedtomorethanoneofasite’soffers(e.g.,“freecreditreportoffers”or100%FreeCreditReport–
Online”),toasite’soverallfeatures(e.g.,“tollfreecustomerservice”),ortothegeneralsubjectofcredit
reportsandscores(e.g.,“HowcanIgetaFreeCreditReport?”).Theterm“free”wasalsousednine

timesaspartofthenamesofsixWebsites.Thesitesare:
• free3bureaucreditreport.com(twice)
• freebiecreditreport.com(twice)
• freecreditreports.com(twice)
• freecreditreportsinstantly.com
Page16
• freecreditreport.com
• thefreecreditreportsource.com.
Otherreferences(16)totheterm“free”involvedservicesthatwereonlytangentiallyrelatedtocredit
reportsandcreditscores(e.g.,freefinancialcalculator;tollfreeassistance;freequotesforhealth,dental,
orcarinsurance). Twentyreferencespertainedtoaconsumer’srightsundertheFreeCreditReporting
ActortheFACTAct(seebelowformoredetailsonthedisclosureofFACTArights).
Anadditionaltenreferencestotheword“free”werecontainedinawarningtoconsumersonthe
freebiecreditreport.comWebsite.Thesitecautionsconsumersagainsttypographicalerrors(e.g.,
reecreditreport.com)thatmightleadthemtoimpostersitesthatsoundlikelegitimatesites:
SomecommonmisspellingsofFreeCreditReportandScoreinclude:reecreditreport,
wwfreecreditreport,freecreditreport,feecredetrepot,totalyfrecreditreport,absolutly
frecreditreport,freecreditreport,freecreditreportcom,myfreecreditreportcom,freecretitreport,
freecredatreportcom,freecreditreporting,feecreditreportcom,freecerditreport,frrecreditreport,
absolutleyandtotalleyfrrecredtreport,credtieport,creduthistory,freeecerditreportes,
getcreditreport,freecreditreportsfreecreditreport.
Warningconsumersaboutthedangersofinadvertentmisspellingsiscertainlyuseful,butitisalsoironic,
sincefreebiecreditreport.comcouldbemistakenbyconsumersforannualcreditreport.com.
Butthemajorityofthereferences,181,werepartofaspecificofferinvolvingcreditreports,creditscores,
and/orcreditmonitoring. Ofthese181,overeightypercent(150)oftheusesoftheterm“free”werein
referencetoacreditmonitoringprogramofferedonatrialperiodof7or30daysandincludingatleast
onefreecreditreportandatleastonefreecreditscore. Anadditional20useswereinconjunctionwitha
freecreditreport(butnotafreecreditscore)aspartofacreditmonitoringtrialperiod.Theseoffers
typicallyapplythewordfreetocreditreports,creditscores,creditmonitoring,orallthree,buttheseoffers
canalsoapplytheword“free”toidentitytheftinsurance,telephonecontactnumbers,andshipping,even

todescribesomethingdeliveredviatheInternet,andthereforevirtuallycostfreetothesupplier. Eleven
additionalsitesofferedfreereportsand/orscoresinconjunctionwithcreditmonitoring,butwithoutthe
freetrialperiod. Table1showsabreakdownofthemajorwaysinwhichtheterm“free”wasusedonthe
homepagesofthe24sites.
Table1:UseoftheTerm“Free”
TYPESOFUSESOFTHETERM“FREE” NUMBEROFUSES
Aspartofacreditmonitoringservicewithtrialperiod 170
Aspartofacreditmonitoringservicewithoutatrialperiod 11
InreferencetoconsumerrightsunderFACTActofFCRA 20
Inreferencetorecommendedsitesorpartnercompanies 20
Inreferencetofreecreditscore(s)whenreport(s)arepurchased 14
Inreferencetocreditcalculatorsorpricequotes 16
Inthe Website’sname 9
Inreferencetoclosemisspellingsofannualcreditreport.com 10
Allotheruses 42
TOTAL 312
Page17
Someofthe312usesoftheword“free”acrossthe24Websites,especiallythosereferringtocredit
reportsandscores,mightbeviewedasbeinginconsistentwiththeguidelinessetbytheFederalTrade
CommissionandtheBetterBusinessBureau. Takeasanillustrationanofferontheexperian.comsiteto
obtain“aFREEPLUSScore”withthepurchaseofExperian’s“3BureauCreditReport”for$34.95.
(Similarofferscanbefoundonother Websites.)Itisdifficulttoseehowbuyersofthisofferaregetting
anythingforfree. Theycangetthesamethingbygoingthroughannualcreditreport.comandpayingjust
$5.95foracreditscorefromExperian.Butthat’snottheonlyreasonuseoftheterm“free”maybe
inappropriate. BeforetheadventofFACTA,Experianandtheothermajorcreditreportingcompanies
typicallysoldcreditreportsaloneforabout$8each(oftenless,dependingonstatelegislation).Thus,the
marketvalueofthethreereportonescoredeal(usingpastandcurrentprices)islessthan$35.Under
theseconditions,itisdifficulttoconcludethatthefollowingconditionsetbytheFTChasbeenmet:
“Whenthepurchaseristoldthatanarticleis“Free”'tohimifanotherarticleispurchased,the
word“Free”indicatesthatheispayingnothingforthatarticleandnomorethantheregularprice

fortheother.”
BythesametokenFTC(andBBB)guidelinessuggestthatforafreeofferofsomethingtobe“specialand
meaningful,”theoffershouldbeshortterm.Otherwise,theofferbecomestheregularsellingprice,in
whichcase,nothingisbeingobtainedforfree.Whilethecurrentstudywasnotlongitudinalinnature,it
appearsthatidenticaloffersoffreecreditreportsandfreecreditscoreshavebeeninplaceforseveral
years,farbeyondthemaximumofsixmonthsrecommendedbytheFTC.Atalesslegalisticlevel,itis
worthaskingwhetheruseoftheword“free”isappropriateona Websitesuchasfreecreditreport.comor
thefreecreditreportsource.com,whenthesite’sprimaryofferingtoconsumersisacreditmonitoring
servicethatcosts$120150onanannualbasis.
4.Potentiall yImportantOmissio ns
TheConsumerReports WebWatchGuidelinesrecommendthat Websitesofferconsumersclearand
easytolocateinformationabouttheir(1)identity,(2)sponsorsandrelevantbusinessrelationships,(3)
financialchargesandmethodsofcancelingservices,(4)methodsofcorrectingincorrectinformation,and
(5)privacypractices.Wehavealreadyexaminedthedisclosureofownershipandbusinessrelationships,
andwefoundthatwithinthetwofamiliesofWebsitesownedorcloselyconnectedtoExperianor
Transunion,informationaboutasite’slineageissometimesclearandconspicuous,butoftenitisnot.
FACTActRights
Perhapsthemostusefulinformationthatanalternative Websitecanprovideconsumersisnotificationof
theirrightsundertheFACTActandtheexistenceoftheannualcreditreport.comWebsite.Thereisa
potentialconflictofinterestforalternative Websiteswhenitcomestodisclosingthisinformation:The
moreconsumersknowabouttheirannualrighttoafreecreditreport,thelesslikelytheyaretopurchase
servicesthatincludeafreereport.Amajority(14)oftheWebsitesmanagetoovercomethisconflictof
interest,althoughtheirdisclosureofFACTAinformation variesacrosssitesintermsofitslocation,
conspicuousness,andwording.
Fivesitesspecializingincreditreports,scores,andmonitoring(consumerinfo.com,creditreporting.com,
experian.com,freecreditreport.com,spendonlife.com)providedinformationaboutaconsumer’srightto
freecreditreports ontheirhomepage,andanadditionalthreesitesofferingabroaderrangeoffinancial
services(eloan.com,lendingtree.com,andmovinglinks.com)disclosedthisinformationonwhat
amountedtothehomepageforcreditrelatedservices. Whiletheseprominentdisclosuresare
commendable,thosemadebyExperianownedorExperianaffiliatedsitesarelikelyduetoarequirement

inthe2005settlementbetweentheFederalTradeCommissionandconsumerinfo.comthatthis
disclosurebemadeclearlyandconspicuously“onthelandingpageofthe Websiteorthefirstpointof
communication”(FederalTradeCommissionvs.Consumerinfo.com,Inc.,2005)
Theremainingsix of14sitesdidnotdescribeaconsumer’srighttoafreecreditreportontheirhome
pagebutdidsoelsewhereonthesite,forexample,withintheorderingprocess(i.e.,afteraconsumerhas
providedpersonalinformation),orwithinasectionoftheWebsitedevotedtoconsumereducation. Four
Page18
ofthe14sitesofferedconsumersmultiplepathstoinformationabouttheirrightsundertheFACTAct.For
example,credit.comalertedconsumerstotheirrighttoafreecreditreportbothaspartoftheordering
processandwithinitsconsumereducationmaterials.Afulllistofthe Websitesthatprovidefullorpartial
informationaboutaconsumer’srightsundertheFACTActisshowninTable2.
Table2:SiteDisclosureofFACTActRights Home/First
Page
Order
Process
Education Other
Consumerinfo.com √ √
Credit.com √ √
Creditreporting.com √
Eloan.com √ √
Equifax.com √
Experian.com √ √
Freebiecreditreport.com √
Freecreditreport.com √
Lendingtree.com √
Movinglinks.com √
Nationalcreditreport.com √
Spendonlife.com √
Transunion.com √
Truecredit.com √

Itisonethingtotellconsumerstheyhavealegislativelycreatedrighttoafreecreditreportonceayear;it
isanothertoinformconsumersonhowtoexercisethatright.Ofthefourteensitesthatmentionedthe
righttofreecreditreportsanywhereontheir Website,tenmadespecificreferenceto
annualcreditreport.com.Fourofthefourteenleftoutthisimportantpieceofinformation.
SomeoftheFACTAdisclosures,regardlessoftheirlocationonthehomepageorelsewhere,weremore
conspicuousthanothers.Acrossthenineteeninstancesofdisclosureacrossthefourteen Websites,
twelvewerejudgedtobeconspicuousbyourtwocoders.Themostcommonmethodofmakingsucha
disclosurenoticeablewasbyprecedingitwiththewords,usuallyinboldletters:IMPORTANT
INFORMATION.IncaseofWebsitessuchasconsumerinfo.com,thisattentiongrabbingphrasewas
followedwithacleardescriptionoftheFACTActandtheprerogativesitgrantstoconsumers:
“Underanewfederallaw,youhavetherighttoreceiveafreecopyofyourcreditreportonce
every12monthsfromeachofthethreenationwideconsumerreportingcompanies.Torequest
yourfreeannualreportunderthatlaw,youmustgotoannualcreditreport.com.
Consumerinfo.comisnotaffiliatedwiththeannualfreecreditreportprogram.”
Attheotherendofthespectrum,nationalcreditreport.com’sonlyreferencetoFACTActrightswasinthe
fifthsectionofalengthysetofarcanedisclaimers,terms,andconditions.Gettingtothesedisclosures
requiresfirstenteringarangeofpersonalinformation.Eveniftheconsumerscrollsdownfarenoughto
findthedisclosure,itmakesnomentionofthe Websiteannualcreditreport.com.
Page19
Thereisnodirectlegalobligationforalternative Websitestoeducateconsumersabouttheircreditrights,
butitcouldbeconsidereddisingenuousforsitesthatsellcreditrelatedservices–especiallythethree
majorcreditreportingbureaus–toleaveoutthisimportantinformation.Itcouldalsobeviewedas
insincereforthesesitesto,first,tellconsumersabouttheirrightsunderFACTAbutthenundercutthis
disclosurewithstatementssuchas:
• “Remember,allfreecreditreportsarenotcreatedequal.GetyourFreeCreditReportandCredit
Scorefromtheleadingproviderofconsumercreditmonitoringproducts(freecreditreport.com)
• “Pleasenotethatnotallfreecreditreportsarethesame.”(consumerinfo.com)
Itiscertainlyappropriatefor WebsitestostressthattheFACTActdoesnotprovideconsumerswith
accesstotheircreditscores,creditmonitoring,oridentitytheftinsurance,butitmightbehardtojustify
anysuperiorityclaimsaboutthecreditreportsreceivedfromannualcreditreport.comversusthose

obtainedfromalternativesites.Whilecreditreportspurchasedfromalternativesitesmayvaryslightlyin
formatfromthoseobtainedforfreefromannualcreditreport.com(e.g.,sidebysidepresentationof
informationfromthethreecreditbureausversusthreeseparatedocuments),virtuallyalloftheinformation
containedinanycreditreportisdrawnfromtheexactsamesource:thethreemajorcreditreporting
bureaus,Experian,TransunionandEquifax.
TypeofCreditScore(s)
Inadditiontothefailureofsomealternativesitestotellconsumersabouttheirrighttoreceivefreereports
annuallyfromthethreemajorcreditreportingcompanies,therearetwoadditionalareaswheredisclosure
onalternativesitesmightbedescribedasspotty:(1)theprecisenatureofthecreditscoresprovidedand
(2)trialperiodchargingandcancellationprocedures.
Thereisalreadysomeconsumerconfusionabouttheexactnatureofcreditscoresandthecompanies
thatprovidethem(ConsumerFederationofAmerica,2004;U.S.GovernmentAccountabilityOffice,2005).
TheoriginalcreditscorewasdevelopedbyFairIsaacCorporationsanditsscore,generallyknownasa
FICOScore,wasuntilrecentlyalmostsynonymouswiththeterm“creditscore.”Currently,FairIsaac
licensesitscreditscoringmethodologytoseveralentities,includingthethreemajorcreditreporting
agencies.Eachoftheseagencies,inturn,modifiesthemethodologyandcreatesscoresbasedonthe
datatheycollect.Forexample,ExperiancallsitsversionoftheFICOScoreitsPLUSScore.Moreover,in
2006,thethreeagenciescollaborativelycreatedanentirelydifferentscore,theVantageScore,witha
maximumvalueof990.(ThemaximumFICOScoreis850.)Withallthisvariation(andthereismore
withintheworldofcreditscoring),itisimportantthat Websitesprovidingcreditscoresbeclearaboutthe
typeofscoreaconsumerwillreceiveand/orpurchase.
Outofthe58offersanalyzedacrossthe24Websites,53includedatleastonecreditscore.Ofthese53
offers,39specifiedtheorganization(i.e.,Equifax,Experian,Transunion,orFairIsaac)associatedwith
thecreditscorethatwouldbeprovided,leaving14thatfailedtodisclosetheprecisenatureorsourceof
thescore.Evenwhenascorewasidentifiedwithaparticularreportingorganization(e.g.,Experian’s
PLUSScore),itwasnotnecessarilyclearwhetherthisscorewasbasedontheFICOorVantageScore
methodology.Thisdifferencecouldbeveryimportanttoaconsumer.Ascoreof800isextremelyhigh
ontheFICOscaleof850butnotasenviablecomparedtotheVantageScore’smaximumvalueof990.
Overall,sitescouldhavebeenfarmorepreciseindescribing,asaformofprepurchaseinformation,the
creditscorestheyprovided. Incontrast,sitesfromwhichcreditscoreswereobtainedinasmallscale

purchasingexercise(seebelow)didagoodjobofcomplyingwiththecreditscoredisclosure
requirementslaidoutinSection609(f)(1)oftheFairCreditReportingAct.
ChargingandCancellationProcedures
Atrialperiodissupposedtoallowconsumerstheopportunitytotryaproductorservicewithoutmaking
anylongtermcommitmenttoit.Inthecaseofoffersinvolvingcreditmonitoring,24outof33provided
consumerswithafreetrialperiodusually30daysinlengthbutsometimesonlyaweek.Inall24of
thesecases,consumerswereaskedtoprovideacreditcardnumber,butitwasnotalwaysclearwhat
wouldhappenwiththiscreditcardinformation:wouldtherebeachargethatwouldlaterbecreditedback
orwouldtherebenochargeuntiltheendofthetrialperiod?
Page20
Intenofthe24cases,thesiteexplicitlystatedthattherewouldbenochargeonaperson’screditcardbill
untilaftertheendofthetrialperiod.Insixadditionalinstances,theofferincludedastatementthatthere
wouldbeachargeduringthetrialperiod,typicallytocovera$1refundableprocessingfee.Inthe
remainingeightcases,however,theofferwassilentonwhetheracharge,evenoneassmallas$1,
wouldbeleviedduringthetrialperiod.
Asindicatedabove,evenconsumerswhoareawareoftheirrighttofreecreditreportsundertheFACT
Actcanfinditattractivetoenrollinafreetrialofacreditmonitoringservice.Iftheycanceltheservice
beforetheexpirationofafreetrialperiod,theseconsumersendupwithoneormorecreditscoresanda
betterideaofwhatcreditmonitoringservicesentail,bothatnocharge.Tocancelaservicebeforetheend
ofthetrialperiod(orlateron),aconsumerneedstobeabletofindandthenfollowthecancellation
procedureswithoutanyunduebarriers.Howdidthesitesperformonthismeasure?
In18ofthe24trialperiodoffers,cancellationspecificinformationwasprovidedsomewhereontheWeb
site.In16ofthese18cases,telephoningthecompanywastheonlymethodofcanceling.Intwo
additionalcases,consumerscouldchoosebetweenusingthetelephoneorsendinganemail.An
exceptiontothisruleofeasycancellationprocedureswasequifax.com.Tofindouthowtocancelits
creditmonitoringtrialperiod,aconsumermustenterhisorhername,address,emailaddress,andother
personalinformation.Then,thecancellationproceduresareprovideddeepinalengthysectiontitled
“TermsofUse.”Ifaconsumermanagestoreachthispoint,heorshewillfindthefollowinginstructions:
YoumaycanceltheProductbynotifyingUs.YoumaynotifyUsbyfirstloggingintothe
MyEquifaxMemberCenter.Onceloggedin,clickonthe"ContactUs"buttonandyoucancontact

theEquifaxCustomerCareteamatthetelephonenumberoremailaddresslistedonthatpage.
Whilenotformidable,thisprocedureismorecumbersomethanjustprovidingaphonenumberfor
cancellationcalls.Insixofthe24offersinvolvingafreetrialperiod,nocancellationspecificinformation
wasfoundonthe Website.
PrivacyandSecurityPractices
Incontrasttoincompleteorabsentdisclosuresofownership,businessrelations,creditscoretype,and
cancellationprocedures,therewereseveralareasinwhichdisclosurewasparticularlystrongand
accordedwellwiththeConsumerReports WebWatchGuidelines:contactinformation,privacypolicies,
andsecuritypractices.Twentythreeofthe24sitesprovidedinformationabouthowtocontactthesitevia
telephone,email,and/orregularmail.Twentyofthe23providedthiscontactinformationonthehome
pageordirectlyfroma“ContactUs”linkonthehomepage.Oftheremainingthreesites,oneprovide
contactinformationunder“AboutUs,”anotherprovideditunder“FAQ’s,”andthethirdprovideditonly
aftertheorderingprocesscommenced.Theremainingsitehada“ContactUs”linkatthebottomofthe
homepage,butitonlyprovidedtheconsumerwithaformthatcouldbeusedtosendanemailmessage.
Therewasnoemailaddressperse,noranyothertypeofcontactinformation.
Withrespecttoprivacypolicies,22ofthe24siteshadpoliciesthatwerereadilyaccessible,usuallyfrom
thehomepage.One Websitehadnopolicy (freebiecreditreport.com),andanothersite’spolicywas
burieddeepinthebuyingprocess(thefreecreditreportsource.com).Similarly,allbutoneofthesites
(freebiecreditreport.com)addressedthesecurityoftransmitteddatawithsecuritystatements,httpsURLs,
padlockicons,and/orsecuritysealsofapprovalfromprogramslikeVerisignandScanAlert’sHackerSafe.
5.PurchaseExperiences
Togainadditionalinsights,aConsumersUnionemployeepurchasedcreditreportingservicesfromsixof
the24sites.(Wehadintendedtomakepurchasesfrommoreofthesites,butwefoundthatthesame
personcannotbuyfromasiteifheorshehasalreadypurchasedaservicefromanothersitewithina
larger“family.”)Theprimarypurposesofthispurchasephaseofthestudywereto:(1)testthe
cancellationproceduresoftheWebsites,includingthecreditingofanychargesmadetocreditcards;and
(2)comparethequalityofthecreditreportsprovidedbythesitestothoseobtainedfrom
annualcreditreport.com.
Page21
CreditreportserviceswerepurchasedfromthefollowingWebsitesduringthelasttendaysof2006:

• credit.com
• creditreporting.com
• identityguard.com
• myfico.com
• nationalcreditreport.com
• thefreecreditreportsource.com
CreditScores
Allsixofthesesitesprovidedacreditreportandatleastonecreditscore.Fiveofthesix(allexcept
myfico.com)providedcreditmonitoringaswell.Fourofthesix(allexceptidentityguard.comand
nationalcreditreport.com)startedwitha30dayfreetrialoftheirservices.
Uponexamination,thecreditreportsdeliveredbythesesixWebsitesdonotdiffersubstantiallyincontent
orformatfromthoseavailableatannualcreditreport.com.Thisisnotsurprisinggiventhatallthecredit
reportdataprovidedbythesealternativesitescomesfromthesamethreemajorcreditreporting
companiesthatparticipateinannualcreditreport.com.Identityguard.comandnationalcreditreport.com
providethethreecreditreportsinasidebysideformat,astyleofpresentationthatmaybeusefulto
consumers.
Theresultswithrespecttocreditscoresweresomewhatmoresurprising.Somesites(credit.com,
creditreporting.com,myfico.com,thefreescreditreportsource.com)gaveasinglecreditscore.Others
(identityguard.com,nationalcreditreport.com)providedallthreescores.Thetotalof10scoresobtained
fromthesixsiteshadamaximumvalueof850,buttherewereslightvariationsamongthescores,even
forthoseassociatedwiththesamecreditreportingagency.Identityguard.comshowedanExperianscore
of782,andcreditreport.comprovidedanExperianPLUSscoreof773.Nationalcreditreport.comand
thefreecreditreportsource.comalsoprovidedExperianbasedscoresdescribedasCreditXpertscores.
(Bothofthelatterscorewere791.)WhilethedifferencesamongthesefourExperianbasedscoresare
notgreat,thetypicalconsumermightbeconfusedaboutwhetherthereisanimportantdifferenceand
whichshouldbesoughtinthefuture.
Theslightvariationinscoresbasedondatafromthesamecreditreportingbureauwasnotconfinedto
Experian.InthecaseofscoresbasedonTransuniondata,nationalcreditreport.comofferedaCreditXpert
scoreof805,whilecredit.comandidentityguard.comyieldedscoresof792and791,respectively.The
twoEquifaxbasedscoresalsodifferedslightlyfromoneanother(787vs.791).ThesingleFICOscore

was806.Alltold,thetenscoresrangedfrom773to806.Whileallofthesescoresaregenerally
consideredexcellent,consumerswouldbejustifiedinexpressingbewildermentaboutthedifferencesand
wonderingwhichismostworthpurchasing.
CancellationProcedures
Thesmallscalepurchasingexperimentalsoyieldedinformationregardingcancellationprocedures.
Theseprocedurescansometimesinvolvesurprises.ConductingasimilartestforthemagazinePC
Worldbutforabroaderrangeofservices,reporterTomSpring(2006)wrotethathewasshockedtolearn
Equifax'screditmonitoringservice(“CreditWatchGold”)requiredathreemonthminimumcommitment.
Inotherwords,aconsumercouldnotcancelafteronemonthandwalkawayfromtheservice.Wedidnot
comeacrossthispolicyinthefive Websitesfromwhichwepurchasedcreditmonitoringservices,andour
cancellationexperiencesweregenerallypositive.Inthefourcasesoffree30daytrialperiods,no
chargeswereincurred.Theothertwoservicesdidnotofferfreetrials;thesesiteschargedtheproper
initialamountsandleviednofurtherchargesaftercancellation.
Whileresultsofourcancellationeffortswerepositive,theprocesswasnotalwayseasy.Therearethree
partstothisprocess:findingthecancellationprocedures,executingthem,thenconfirmingand
documentingthecancellationisdone.Thesamepersonwhofirstorderedtheservicesreturnedtothesix
Websitestotesttheprocess.Herexperiencesvariedwidely.
Page22
Regardingdiscoveryofcancellationprocedures,nationalcreditreport.comwastheonlysitetodisplayan
explicitreferencetocancellationproceduresonitshomepage,viaatablabeled“cancellationpolicy”at
thebottomofthehomepage.Intheotherfivecases,ourbuyerwenttothe“contactus”portionofthe
site.Inthreecases(creditreporting.com,identityguard.com,myfico.com,and
thefreecreditreportsource.com),therewasanexplicitreferencetoaphonenumber,andsometimesan
emailaddressaswell,throughwhichcancellationswereprocessed.Intheremainingcase,therewasno
referencetocancelling,buttherewasatollfreetelephonenumberforcontactingthecompany.
Myfico.com’scancellationpolicyisunique,combiningaconsumerfriendlypracticewithoneactuallyless
friendly.TheWebsiterequiresconsumerstowaituntilatleastthe23rddayofthe30dayfreetrialperiod
beforecancelling.Thisnarrowsthewindowduringwhichconsumersmayexercisetheirrighttocancel.
Ontheotherhand,myfico.comsendsareminderonthe23rdday.Noothersitessentareminder.
TheCUbuyerattemptedtocancelallsixservicesviatelephone,andherexperiencesvaried.The

cancellationproceduresforthefreecreditreportsource.comwerequick,easy,andfriendly.TheCUcaller’s
experiencewithmyfico.comrepresentedtheotherendofthecancellationspectrum.Herfirstphonecall
wasdisconnectedbeforereachinganoperator.Hersecondcallrequiredwaitingtwelveminutesonhold
beforebeingansweredbyanoperator.Then,ourbuyerwasaskedanumberofquestionsthatwere
perceivedasanaggressiveefforttodissuadeherfromcancellingtheservice.Anotherdisquieting
cancellationexperienceoccurredwithnationalcreditreport.com.Thebasicprocedureistoaskthe
consumertoleaveavoicemailmessage,includinghisorhernameandsocialsecuritynumber.Many
consumersmayrightlyfeeluncomfortableleavingsuchinformationonanansweringmachine.
Fourofthecompanies(credit.com,creditreporting.comidentityguard.com,,thefreecreditreportsource.com)
providedourbuyerwithareferencenumberatthetimeofthecall.Creditreporting.comalsosentan
emailmessageconfirmingthecancellation.Myfico.comandnationalcreditreport.comprovidednorecord
ofcancellation.
Insum,theresultsofthepurchaseexperienceundertakenaspartofthisstudyarebasedononlysix
Websitesandtherefore,notdefinitive. Itisimportanttonotethatallsixcompanieschargedtheproper
amountfortheirserviceandpromptlyhonoredcancellationrequests.Sitesvariedwidelywithrespectto
easeofcancellationproceduresandhowtofindthem.Sitesalsodifferedinthenumberoftypesofcredit
scoresprovided,andtherewasadditional,thoughsmall, variationintheexactnumericalscoreyieldedby
scoringregimesbasedonthesamedata.
CONCLUSIONS
BestPractices
Onemightquestionthepracticeofoffering“free”creditreportsasaninducementtosignupforacredit
monitoringserviceoroffering“free”creditscoresasanincentivetopurchasecreditreports–especially
whentheoffersaremadebythesameentitiesrequiredbylawtoprovideconsumerswithgenuinelyfree
creditreports.Itistheconsumerwhodecideswhethertheseoffersareworthaccepting,but Web
publishershavearesponsibility,atminimum,toclearlyandconspicuouslydescribethevariousfeatures
oftheiroffers,includingtheexactnatureofthecreditscoresandreportstobeprovided.
Theyshouldalsorefrainfromdisparagingcreditreportsavailablefromannualcreditreport.com.Itmight
alsobearguedthatWebpublishers –atleastthoseownedbyorcloselyconnectedtoEquifax,Experian,
andTransunion–havearesponsibilitytodiscloseaconsumer’srighttoobtainfreecreditreportsat
annualcreditreports.com.

Basedonthe24Websitesanalyzedinthisstudy,weidentifiedavarietyofgoodpracticesthat,taken
together,shouldconstituteastandardthatallsitesinthiscategoryshouldstrivetomaintain. These
practicesinclude(butarenotrestrictedto):
1.Alertingconsumersonthehomepagetotheexistenceandservicesofannualcreditreport.com(see
Table2).
Page23
2.Avoidingstatementssuchas“notallfreecreditreportsarethesame”thatsuggestcreditreports
providedbyannualcreditreport.comareinferiortothoseprovidedbyanalternativesite.
3.Avoidingnaming Websitesthatmightbeconfusedwithannualcreditreport.com,especiallyregarding
useoftheword“free.”
4.Specifyingclearlyandconspicuouslythenatureofeachserviceoffered,especiallytheexacttypeof
creditscore(s)thatwillbeprovided,aswellastheservice’sprice.
5.Statingclearlyandconspicuouslythetermsofanyfreetrialperiod,whichshouldbenolessthan30
days(somesitesofferatrialperiodof7days).
6.Refrainingfromcharginganything,evena$1processingfee,duringanyfreetrialperiod.
7.Providingclearandconspicuousinformationaboutcancellationproceduresforanyfreetrialperiods
andminimizinghasslesifaconsumerchoosestocancel.
8.Refrainingfromusingmediacoverageofa Websiteoradvertisementspaidforbythesesitesas
mediaendorsementsofthe Website(contrastLendingTree’scarefulpracticeswiththevague“asseen
onTV”statementsoffreecreditreport.comandprivacymatters.com)
9.Usingwellknown,thirdpartysealsofapprovaltoinstillconsumerconfidenceinasite’sprivacyand
securitypractices,especiallyinlightofthesensitivepersonalinformationrequestedbyWebsitesaspart
oftheenrollmentprocess.
10.Refrainingfromaskingirrelevantquestionssuchaswhetherapersonintendstobuyahouseorcar
inthenextsixmonths,whichlikelywillbeusedtocollectmarketingdataforotherproductsandservices.
Althoughnoneofthe24sitesmetalltencriteria,somearelivinguptothemajority.Threeofthebetter
siteswerecreditreporting.com,eloan.com,andexperian.com.Interestingly,thefirsttwoaremembersof
theExperian“family,”buttheothersixmembersoftheExperianfamilydonotfareaswell.Forexample,
freebiecreditreport.comcontainstheword“free”initsname,usestheword“free”fortyeighttimesonits
homepage,discouragesconsumersfromusingannualcreditreport.com,isnotclearonthetypeofcredit

scoreaconsumerwillreceive,usesthevagueendorsementof“asseenin”Newsweek,USAToday,and
TheWallStreetJournal,andprovidesneitheranemailaddressnorageographicaddress. Similarly,
Transunion.comfaredwellonthesecriteria,butseveralmembersofitsfamilydidnotscoreaswell,
includingfree3bureaucreditreport.com,freecreditreports.com,freecreditreportsinstantly.com,and
privacymatters.com.
RecommendationstoConsumers
Somesitesofferconsumersabetterfinancialdealthanothersdo. Thereareavarietyof“bestbuys,”or
combinationofbuys:
1.Fortheconsumerwhowantstoobtainthemostforfreeandisabletocancelbeforetheendofa
sevendaytrialperiodbeforechargesareincurred,thebestdealwasfoundatspendonlife.com(a
memberoftheprivacymatters.combranchoftheTransunionfamily).ThiswastheonlyWebsitethat
claimedtogivetheconsumerallthreecreditreportsandallthreecreditscoresduringafreetrialperiod.
However,thereweresomepossibledrawbacks.Inadditiontotheshorttrialperiod,consumerswere
assessedanimmediatebutrefundable$1processingfee.Forthedurationofthecreditmonitoring
service,theconsumeralsohadnochoiceaboutbeingchargedanadditional$1permonthfor
membershipinSavingSmart,aprogramofshoppingdiscounts.
2.Anotherstrategyistosignupforathirtydayfreetrialofbothexperian.comandtransunion.comcredit
monitoringservices,thencancelbeforetheendofthirtydays.Thiswillyieldonefreereportandscore
fromeachofthesetwocreditreportingcompanies.Equifaxdoesnotofferasimilarfreetrialperiodforits
Page24
creditmonitoringservice,butaconsumercanobtainafreecopyofhisorherEquifaxcreditreportvia
annualcreditreport.comandpurchaseanEquifaxscorefor$7.95.Bycombiningthesethreeactions,a
consumercanobtainallthreecreditscoresandallthreecreditreportsfor$7.95,withtheadditional
advantageofbeingabletostaggeraccesstotheservicesoverseveralmonths.Butconsumersmust
remembertocancelservicesbeforetheendoffreetrialperiods.
3.Consumerswillingtopayfortheconvenienceofgettingthreecreditreportsinconjunctionwiththree
creditscoresfromasinglesiteatasingletimecouldshopnationalcreditreport.com.For$23.95,thesite
providedthreereports,threescores,andafirstmonthofcreditmonitoring.Theservicecanbecancelled
afteronemonth.Thereisnofreetrialandthe$23.95monthlychargeisrecurringuntilcancellation.
4.Ifcreditmonitoringbeyondonemonthisimportanttoaconsumer,severalsitesofferafreetrial

followedbya$9.95monthlychargeforonecreditreport,onecreditscore,andmonitoring viaoneofthe
threecreditbureaus.Similarservicescoveringallthreebureauscanbepurchasedforaslittleas$19.95
(andasmuchas$39.95)permonth.
5. ConsumersUnionrecommendsthatconsumersunbundlethepurchaseofscores,reports,andcredit
monitoring,atleastinitially. StartexercisingyourrightundertheFACTActtoobtainfreecopiesofcredit
reportsfromeachofthethreecreditagenciesusingannualcreditreport.com.Forconsumersalsocurious
abouttheircreditscores,oneormorecanbepurchasedatlowcostwhenconsumersaccess
annualcreditreport.com. Atthetimeofthisstudy,pricesforthesescoreswere:$5.95forExperian,and
$7.95forEquifaxandTransunion.Thetotalforallthreeis$21.85.Contrastthisamountwiththe$47.85
onewouldpayforthreescoresandthreereportsfrommyfico.comorthe$39.95chargedbyseveralother
sites.Plus,usingthestrategyofoptimizingthevalueofusingannualcreditreport.com,theconsumercan
staggeraccesstoreportsacrossseveralmonths.Afteraconsumerhasreviewedthecontentsofall
threecreditreportsandperhapsexaminedallthreecreditscores,heorsheshouldthendecidewhether
creditmonitoringislikelytobeofvalue(forexample,asameansofdetectingidentitytheft)andwhetherit
isimportanttohaveunlimitedaccesstooneorallthreecreditreportsandscores. Securityfreezeson
creditreports,providedbylawinamajorityofstates,maybealessexpensiveandmoreeffective
alternativetocreditmonitoringservicesasameansofpreventingidentitytheft.Toseewhichstateshave
thesecurityfreeze,see:http:/ /www.consumersunion.org/SecurityFreeze.htm
StudyLimitationsandRemainingQuestion s
Acommoncriticismofsurveys–whetherofindividualsororganizations–isthatasampleisnot
representativeofthelargerpopulation.Thiscriticismisnotapplicabletothecurrentstudy.The24 Web
sitesstudiedweredrawnfromboththesponsoredandnonsponsoredsearchresultsofthetwolargest
searchenginesintheUnitedStates(GoogleandYahoo!).Theresultinglistnearlyexhauststhenumber
ofsitesfromwhichconsumersmightpurchasecreditreports,scores,andmonitoringservices.Itincludes
themajorcreditreportingagencies(Equifax,Experian,andTransunion),Websitesownedbyorclosely
affiliatedwiththesethreeagencies,andtheoriginalcreatorofcreditscores(FICO).
Onepotentiallimitationofthisstudyisthattheworldofcreditrelated Websitesisrapidlychanging.
Threemonthsafterdatawerecollected,all24sitesstudiedremaininbusinessandcontinuetooffera
varietyofcreditrelatedservices.Whereasmostsitesremainunchanged,somehadalreadymade
modificationstotheirservices,prices,ordisclosures.Itisthereforeimportantforthereadertoconsider

thesepossiblechanges.
Thereareadditionalquestionsthisstudywasnotdesignedtoanswer.First,andmostbasic:Howmany
consumers,andwhichtypes,arepatronizingthevariouskindsofalternativecreditreportingsites?How
satisfiedaretheywiththeirpurchases?Someofthesitesthemselvessuggestthatbusinessisgood.For
example,freecreditreport.comencouragesconsumersto“joinover20millionconsumerswhohave
alreadycheckedtheirfreeExperiancreditreport.”(Thisvagueclaimhasseveralpossiblemeanings.It
couldbeinterpretedtomean20millionpeoplehavepurchasedtheirreportfromfreeecreditreport.com;
thisparticularsiteandotheralternativesites;orthissite,otheralternativesites,plus
annualcreditreport.com.)
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Asecondsetofquestionsconcernsconsumers’interpretationofthevariousclaimspresentedoncredit
reporting Websites. Forexample,whenasiteoffers“freecreditreportsandscores”doestheword“free”
refertothereportsonly,ortothereportsandscores?Howdoconsumersinterpretaphraselike“notall
freecreditreportsarethesame”?
Third,severalofthestudied Websitesstateexplicitlythatrepeatedlycheckingaperson’screditreport
doesnotnegativelyaffectaperson’screditscoresorratings,butwewerenotnecessarilyconvinced.
TheCUbuyernotedvariation(thoughslight)betweentwosupposedlyidenticalscoresatvirtuallythe
sametime,atleastraisingthepossibilitycreditscorescaninfactbeinfluencedbyrequeststoviewcredit
reports.
Fourth,giventhelargenumberofoffersbasedonthepurchaseofcreditmonitoringservices,itwouldbe
usefultoknowhoweffectivetheseservicesareinreducingtheincidenceorseverityofidentitytheft.If
creditmonitoringisnoteffectiveinalertingconsumersinatimelyfashiontounusualandunexpected
changesintheircreditreportsandscores,thencreditmonitoringservicesmaynotbewortheven$9.95
permonth,thelowestpriceforthisservice.
Intheend,itisuptotheindividualconsumer–afterconsideringpreferencesandcircumstances–to
decidewhetherthevariousservicesofferingaccesstocreditreports,scores,and/ormonitoringservices
areworththeirprice.Itiscertainlyadvantageousforconsumersthatmanyoffersinvolveafreetrial
period.Atthesametime,manyoftheseservicescouldbeseentobetakingadvantageofconsumer
ignoranceorthedesiretogetsomethingfornothing.Themajorityofconsumerswouldbewise,therefore,
tostartexercisingtheirrighttofreecreditreportsfromallthreeofthemajorcreditreportingcompanies

beforepayingforanythingelse.
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WebWatch,May1. />ConsumerFederationofAmerica(2004).“MostConsumersDoNotUnderstandCreditScoresAccording
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