Stop the Junk Mail
Every day millions of letters containing offers for credit cards, insurance, and other services and/or products are mailed to recipients who could easily live without these pieces of junk mail. You yourself may get ten or fifteen credit card offers a week. Have you ever wondered how these companies get your information? Have you ever wondered why you started receiving junk mail the day you got your first credit card or first loan? Well wonder no more. Answers to these questions are uncovered. And, more importantly, discover the solution to your junk mail problems; stop the junk mail.
How it works
The world of business is quite cut throat in the sense that businesses find ways to increase sales and produce sales leads any way possible. One popular way to increase sales is by sending mail; whether it be by snail mail or email. But how do companies get the information needed to send mailings? The truth is that all your personal information (all contact information, etc.) held by credit bureaus such as Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian is distributed and sold to third parties (credit card companies, insurance companies, etc.) as an additional source of revenue.
Why it happens
The day you got your first credit card, auto insurance, loan or other credit based product, was the first day that credit agencies started to collect information about you. This information consists of everything from where you were born to current and past addresses, phone numbers and email addresses. After collecting all this personal information, the credit bureaus will sell it to third parties. These third party companies will use your information to determine a firm offer to present by a mailing, email, or phone call. So how do you stop this?
Consumers Privacy
All credit bureaus have a privacy policy which describes the dissemination process of your personal information and generally reads something like this: The named credit bureau shall have no obligation of any kind with respect to such Feedback and shall be free to use and distribute the Feedback to others without limitation, including, but not limited to developing and marketing products incorporating such Feedback. This is very wordy and can confuse a lot of people, but generally it says they will use your information they collect in any way they see fit. Credit bureaus are obligated to provide information on how to opt out of this information selling or sharing to consumers, however, it is done in such a discrete way that not many people will know or find out about the process.
Stop the mail
To stop unwanted mailings, phone calls, emails, and the like, simply opt out of this sharing circle that is created by the credit bureaus by visiting www.optoutprescreen.com or calling 1888-567-8688. Two options exist for opting out. Consumers can opt out of information sharing for 5 years or permanently. This will eventually end all unwanted firm offers for insurance, credit, and other similar products presenting in mailings or phone calls, so be sure this is what you want. Also note the opt-out process will take a few months as lead lists that contain your information are already in circulation. When new lead lists are generated and sold by the credit bureaus and after opting out, your information will not be given out.
Opt Out
www.optoutprescreen.com
or
1 888-567-8688
More Important Info
If you are interested in producing a credit report for yourself, be aware that only one online source of this information is the authorized online site for your free annual report from the three major consumer reporting agencies. Read about this in How do I get a copy of my credit report or credit score?
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