FTC Consumer Alert
Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Consumer Protection Office of Consumer & Business Education
Want a Free Annual Credit Report?
The Only Official Website is annualcreditreport.com
The Fair Credit Reporting Act 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. The three companies have set up one central website, toll-free
telephone number, and mailing address through which you can order your free credit report. The
Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, wants you to know
that, if you want to order your free annual credit report online, there is only one authorized website:
annualcreditreport.com.
Many other websites claim to offer “free credit reports,” “free credit scores,” or “free credit
monitoring.” But, be careful. These sites are not part of the official annual free credit report
program. And in some cases, the “free”
product comes with strings attached. For
example, some sites sign you up for a
supposedly “free” service that converts to one
you have to pay for after a trial period ends.
If you don’t cancel during the trial period,
you may be agreeing to let the company start
charging fees to your credit card.
These sites often look like the official site
at annualcreditreport.com. Some use terms
like “free report” in their names; others have
website names that purposely misspell annualcreditreport.com in the hope that you will mistype the
name of the official site. Some of these “imposter” sites direct you to other sites that try to sell you
something or collect your personal information.
If you want to order your free annual credit report online, carefully type in the name:
annualcreditreport.com, or go to the FTC’s website which has a link to it. Once you have filled out
certain information at annualcreditreport.com, you will be directed to individual websites operated
by the three nationwide consumer reporting companies. You may get offers to buy additional products
or services while on the companies’ websites, such as credit scores or credit monitoring products, but
you are not required to make a purchase to receive your free annual credit reports.
If you get an email or see a pop-up ad claiming it’s from annualcreditreport.com or any of the
three nationwide consumer reporting companies, do not reply or click on any link in the message – it’s
To Order Your Free Annual Credit Report
• Visit annualcreditreport.com
• Call toll-free: 1-877-322-8228
• Mail your completed Annual Credit
Report Request Form to:
Annual Credit Report Request Service
P.O. Box 105281
Atlanta, GA 30348-5281
probably a scam. annualcreditreport.com will NEVER send you an email solicitation for your free
annual credit report, use pop-up ads, or call you to ask for personal information. Forward any email
that claims to be from annualcreditreport.com or any of three consumer reporting companies to the
FTC’s database of deceptive spam at [email protected].
To order your report at annualcreditreport.com, you must provide your name, address, Social
Security number, and date of birth. If you have moved in the last two years, you may have to give
your previous address. To maintain the security of your file, each nationwide consumer reporting
company also may ask you for information that only you would know, like the amount of your
monthly mortgage payment. Each company may ask you for different information. That’s because
the information each company has in your file may come from different sources.
You also can order your free report by calling toll-free, 1-877-322-8228, or by mailing a
completed Annual Credit Report Request Form to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box
105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. Do not contact the three nationwide consumer reporting companies
directly. They only provide free annual credit reports through the website, phone number, and
address above.
For more information about your rights to free credit reports, see the FTC publication, Your
Access to Free Credit Reports.
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-FTC-
HELP (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.
FOR THE CONSUMER
1-877-FTC-HELP
ftc.gov
FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
May 2006
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
ea
ch 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
ZipCode
StateCity
Apartment Number / Private Mailbox
For Puerto Rico Only: Print Urbanization Name
Street NameHouse Number
Previous Mailing Address (complete only if at current mailing address for less than two years):
Fold HereFold Here
Fold HereFold 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:
For Puerto Rico Only: Print Urbanization NameApartment Number / Private Mailbox
31238
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B C D E F
G
H
I
J
K
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M
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