Opting out of Solicitations
As described so many times before in other chapters in this guide, the credit bureaus are more than happy to sell your personal information, including your telephone number and email address to marketers. Unfortunately this is a good way too to spread your personal information around and also make you more vulnerable to identity theft.
To opt out of the credit card solicitations, junk mail and telemarketing pleas that are so often a part of just having a credit bureau, the credit bureaus have a toll free number (888-5OPT-OUT) that allows you to take your name off marketing lists that are sold to credit card companies. Signing up won’t eliminate credit card solicitations, but it will cut down on the volume of offers that you receive considerably. The fewer of these credit card offers that you receive in the mail; the fewer chances thieves will have to steal them.
Another tact is to contact the Direct Marketing Association and ask to be removed from their mail and phone lists as well. The address to do this is –
Mail Preference Service,
P.O. Box 643,
Carmel NY 10512
While you are at it get your telephone number removed by also writing –
Telephone Preference Service
P.O. Box 1559, Carmel, NY 10512.
Here is an example of the kind of letter that you would write a credit bureau to opt out of these services – you can also use this letter to write to any business that you feel is distributing your personal information without your permission.
Example of an Opt Out Letter
Name of credit bureau or company
Company address
City, state zip code
Re: Opt out instructions for Account # or SIN # or (your name)
Dear Sir or Madam,
Please be advised that in accordance with the Financial Services Modernization Act (Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act) you are hereby notified that you do not have y permission to share my personal information with non-affiliated third-party companies or individuals.
Please be advised that I am further notifying you in accordance with FACT that you do not have my permission to share my personal information or information about my credit worthiness with any affiliated company of yours.
Please send me a written confirmation that you are honoring my personal privacy request.
I can be reached by telephone at (your number) or by e-mail at (your email.)
Thank you in your advance for your cooperation.
Sincerely,
Your name
To eliminate telephone solicitations register for the federal Do Not Call List at www.donotcall.gov or dial 1-888-382-1222. If a solicitor calls you after you’ve been on this registry for at least three months and the caller isn’t a charity, survey-taker, pollster or political fundraiser odds are that scam artist is calling you as a legitimate company would abide by the Do Not Call List.