Alton J. Jones' How To Get Good Credit Gab

This is very interesting! Beware!

I found the following information online at tv.boingboing.net and wanted to share it with all of you:

A number of credit card companies now issue credit cards with embedded RFIDs (radio frequency ID tags), with promises of enhanced security and speedy transactions.
But on today's episode of Boing Boing tv, hacker and inventor Pablos Holman shows Xeni how you can use about $8 worth of gear bought on eBay to read personal data from those credit cards -- cardholder name, credit card number, and whatever else your bank embeds in this manner.

Fears over data leaks from RFID-enabled cards aren't new, and some argue they're overblown -- but this demo shows just how cheap and easy the "sniffing" can be.
This episode is part of our ongoing series of interviews with some of the thinkers, hackers, and tinkerers at the O'Reilly Emerging Technology conference this year.

If you open an individual account, you may authorize another person to use it. If you name your spouse as the authorized user, a creditor who reports the credit history to a credit bureau must report it in your spouse’s name as well as in yours (if the account was opened after June 1, 1977). A creditor also may report the credit history in the name of any other authorized user.

You may request that consumer reporting agencies do not distribute your name on lists used by creditors and insurers to make unsolicited offers of credit and insurance. Requests can be made by telephone or in writing by filling out a form available from each credit reporting agency. For telephone requests, call (888) 5 OPT OUT to be excluded from Experian, Equifax, and Trans Union. Telephone requests last for two years; written requests are permanent. Consumers have the right to sue consumer reporting agencies, users, and providers in state and federal court for violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

There are four main varieties of credit insurance: Credit life insurance pays off all or some of your loan if you die. Credit disability insurance, also known as accident and health insurance, makes payments on the loan if you become ill or injured and can't work. Involuntary unemployment insurance, also known as involuntary loss of income, makes your loan payments if you lose your job due to no fault of your own, such as a layoff. Credit property insurance protects personal property used to secure the loan if destroyed by events like theft, accident or natural disasters.

While using the Internet, you can learn about any number of topics and buy almost anything. Be aware, though, that Internet shopping, like traditional shopping, may carry some risk. Software to protect you and your privacy is often a part of most web sites. In fact, when ordering online, it would be wise to check if you are on a secure server by looking for a security symbol such as an unbroken key or padlock symbol at the bottom of your Internet browser window. These symbols indicate that any information you may send to the web site, including your credit card numbers, is encrypted or put into computer code prior to transmission.

Have you ever been billed for merchandise you returned or never received? Has your credit card company ever charged you twice for the same item or failed to credit a payment to your account? While frustrating, these errors can be corrected. It takes a little patience and knowledge of the dispute settlement procedures provided by the Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA).The law applies to "open end" credit accounts, such as credit cards, and revolving charge accounts - such as department store accounts. It does not cover installment contracts - loans or extensions of credit you repay on a fixed schedule. Consumers often buy cars, furniture and major appliances on an installment basis, and repay personal loans in installments as well.

A house is probably the single largest credit purchase for most consumers, and one of the most complicated. The Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, like Truth in Lending, is a disclosure law. The act, administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, requires the lender to give you, in advance, certain information about the costs you will pay when you close the loan. The act also requires that lenders give you the booklet "Buying Your Home: Settlement Costs and Information" to help you understand the closing process and shop for lower settlement costs. To get the booklet, write to:

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Housing
Attention: RESPA Enforcement
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
451 Seventh Street, S.W.Room 9416
Washington, DC 20410

Should you need to, phone: (202) 708-4560

The Federal Reserve pamphlet "A Consumer's Guide to Mortgage Closing Costs" also contains useful information.