Tracking Credit Spies--How Much Is It Worth?

Vendors of everything from computers to investments are spying on you--buying information about your credit, buying habits, family status, pets, home and mortgage from credit bureaus and other information companies. You know this is going on, because these vendors send “pre-approved” credit cards and pitch letters based on information you once thought was private--such as how much you owe on your house and your children’s ages.

Now, for a fee, you can spy on yourself.

Why would you want to spy on yourself? To find out what everyone else is seeing when they spy on you, of course.

“The whole premise is to let you have access to information that other people have about you,” said Jesse Fink, vice president and general manager of CUC International in Stamford, Conn. CUC has introduced Privacy Guard, the latest--and perhaps most comprehensive--entry in the You-Spy-On-You market.

It’s worth noting that despite the name, Privacy Guard doesn’t do anything to protect your privacy. It simply gives you easy access to a limited amount of the information about your affairs that other people have compiled--such as your credit report and medical history. And, for that access, you pay $49 a year.

CUC isn’t the only company that hopes to cash in on your apparent need to look over your own shoulder.

Earlier this year, a California company called Credco popped into the market. It offers to sell you a “merged copy” of your own credit report for $24. A merged credit report is simply one that combines all the information contained in credit reports issued by TRW, Trans Union and Equifax--the Big Three credit reporting companies.

Since 1985, TRW Information Services has been offering a service called “Credentials.” What does Credentials do? It allows you to look at your own credit report as often as you want, and TRW notifies you know when certain other people are spying.

Long-time customers are enthusiastic about the service, which costs $44 annually, said Janis Lamar, spokeswoman for TRW. About 1 million of the 180 million people TRW tracks buy the Credentials service, Lamar added. But, quite frankly, she said, TRW stopped actively selling the service years ago because the idea was ridiculed.

“The press we got on Credentials wasn’t altogether positive,” she said with a sigh.

For example, one Washington Post columnist summed up the criticism like this: “Correct me if I’m wrong here--they’re telling me that I should give them (money) so I can look at the information about me that they collected without my permission and have been selling for years to God only knows who so I can see if it’s incorrect .”

Ahem.

Privacy Guard takes the process a step further. CUC’s service sells you information about your credit report, your driving record, your Social Security records and your medical history.

You didn’t know all that was public information? Some of it--specifically, the Social Security information--is not. The Social Security Administration will provide you with a benefits analysis but they don’t give out that information freely. CUC just provides you with a form you can fill out and send in; Social Security will respond directly to you. CUC International will not receive the information.

Medical information is also not completely public, but the Medical Information Bureau in Boston does provide it to life insurers. They don’t have data on every visit you’ve ever made to a doctor, incidentally. They track only people who disclose that they have dread diseases, such as AIDs or cancer, on insurance forms. That’s to prevent some hapless insurer from writing a million-dollar life policy just weeks before the insured could be expected to kick the bucket.

Although it may seem ridiculous, it sometimes make sense to find out what other people have found out about you. For instance, it is advisable occasionally to check your credit report and Social Security records for errors. They do happen--frequently, in fact.

And, although mistakes in medical and driving records apparently are rare, it may make sense to check these, too--if you’re planning to take out a big life insurance policy or buy a Porsche.

The question is whether or not the information is worth $49, $44 or even $24. The answer depends on how high a price you put on convenience.

It is certainly easier to have someone else do the leg work for you, but you should know that you could get most of this information for free.

The only thing you could get charged for, in fact, is the credit reports. Most credit reporting agencies charge between $8 and $15 for a copy of one’s own credit report. TRW provides each consumer with one free copy each year for free.

And all credit reporting agencies are required to give you a copy of your credit report if you’re turned down for credit because of negative information in your credit history.

You can call the Medical Information Bureau (617/426-3660) and have them send you a copy of your medical history.

You can write the local Social Security Administration yourself, and receive an explanation of your projected retirement benefits.

And you can check with the state Department of Motor Vehicles about your driving record.

In other words, it doesn’t take a lot of money to look over your own shoulder--but it might take some time.

How’d They Find That Out?

You just had a baby and are suddenly buried in solicitations from photographers and toy companies? You can’t understand how two dozen mortgage bankers happen to know your loan amount? You are not alone.

Many consumers haven’t got the foggiest notion about how they get on mailing lists and how vendors seem to get all sorts of personal information about their lives, industry experts say.

In fact, most of the information starts with public documents and then gets sorted by companies such as TRW. But to understand how it’s done, you’ve got to have a basic knowledge of what information is public.

* Property ownership and liens. When you buy a house, the purchase price is recorded with your county assessor’s office. Liens against the property--such as your mortgage loan--are also recorded.

* Birth records. Local halls of records keep data on every person born.

* Credit records. If you have ever borrowed a dime from anyone other than a relative, you’ve probably got a credit record. Credit card companies frequently search these reports to find good risks for pre-approved credit cards.

* Driving records. Tickets, major accidents and driving restrictions--such as whether you need glasses to drive--are all recorded with the Department of Motor Vehicles. The DMV also keeps records on the make and model of your car, your height, weight and age. These records are used by auto insurers, as well as by vendors of everything from driving gloves to sunglasses.

* Miscellaneous. If you’ve purchased goods through the mail, have a brokerage account or have ever filled out a form to get on a mailing list or enter a contest, you’ve landed yourself in a host of additional information databases. Retailers commonly “rent” their mailing lists to other companies.

Want to get out of the mailing list bonanza? You can remove your name from national mailing lists by writing to the Direct Marketing Assn. Mail Preference Service, P.O. Box 9008, Farmingdale, N.Y. 11735-9008. The trade association can also get you off telemarketing lists. That address is DMA Telephone Preference Service, P.O. Box 9014, Farmingdale, N.Y. 11735-9014.