Experian North America CEO Victor Nichols recently was recognized by the Consumer Credit Counseling Services of Orange County, California, as its 2014 Community Hero of the Year for his commitment to consumer financial literacy. Mr. Nichols and Experian are proud to have been honored with this award. Experian has long been committed to consumer financial literacy and removing the mystery surrounding credit reports and scores, and that commitment has not wavered. More than 20 years ago, Experian became the first national credit reporting company to establish a dedicated consumer education team. Over the ensuing two decades the company has used creative outreach, combining traditional materials and online technology with powerful partnerships to reach consumers of all ages and economic circumstance with critical financial information, tools and resources. Here are just a few examples of what Experian has done and continues to do to help people become more financially capable: In 1995, Experian was a founding partner of the JumpStart Coalition for Financial Literacy, an organization that advocates for mandatory financial literacy coursework in our schools. Five years ago Experian provided a grant to JumpStart to launch the first national teacher’s conference for financial educators and continues to sponsor this event annually. In 1997, we launched Ask Experian, the industry’s first online consumer credit advice column. Published continuously since, consumers submit on average more than 1,000 questions each month. The company awards financial literacy grants in excess of $300,000 annually to support innovative consumer financial education programs conducted by non-profit organizations. Grants have facilitated programs that reach hundreds of thousands of consumers each year including high school and university students, military personnel, minority communities, the underbanked, and cities particularly hard hit by the recession. Our education partners include the National Foundation For Credit Counseling, the Center for Financial Services Innovation, the Credit Builders Alliance, the National Consumers League, the InCharge Institute, the Mission Asset Fund and Call For Action. Recently, Experian established an Education Ambassador program to train its own employee volunteers so that they can support outreach programs in communities across the country. Social media has further enabled us to talk directly with people about critical financial subjects. Our weekly #CreditChat is always a lively discussion and is open to anyone who would like to join in the conversation on Twitter every Wednesday and 12 p.m. Pacific time. Learn more about Experian’s commitment to consumers and find tips on how to live credit smart.

Experian is excited to participate in the 2014 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah! We’re lucky to have some great stars stopping by our Experian Coffee Bar to answer some questions about their films. Check out the action on Sundance Channel on the following days and times: Sunday, Jan 19th at 10 am MT The Intersection of Television and Independent Film presented by Experian Confirmed Panelists: Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Honourable Woman Jason Momoa, Game of Thrones Moderated by Barbara Chai, The Wall Street Journal Monday, Jan 20th at 2 pm MT Spotlight on Female Directors presented by Experian (a discussion showcasing the impact of female directors in the film industry) Confirmed Panelists: Rory Kennedy, Last Days in Vietnam Shola Lynch, Free Angela and All Political Prisoners Judith Helfand, Cooked Lucy Walker, The Crash Reel Moderated by Indiewire's Anne Thompson, author of the upcoming The $11 Billion Year Wednesday, Jan 22nd at 1 pm MT Filmmaker Conversation presented by Experian Confirmed Panelists: Andrew Droz Palermo, Co-Director, Rich Hill Tracey Droz Tragos, Co-Director, Rich Hill If you’re attending Sundance, make sure to swing by our Experian Coffee Bar (centrally located in the middle of the action on Main Street) to grab a free coffee… and you’ll get to keep the cup! If you miss the panels in person or on TV, we’ll make sure to share a recap with you soon. Also, make sure to check out our Experian Facebook page for updates throughout the weekend. Photo: ShutterStock

Experian’s State of Credit report recently highlighted the credit savviness of four generational groups, and showed how differently they manage their financial obligations. As you’d expect, there were several intriguing findings, so we extended the research to see how these same generational groups would differ when it comes to buying a vehicle. In a recent analysis of market trends in the automotive industry, Experian Automotive looked at vehicle registrations, and examined the car buying habits of Millennials (up to 32 years old), Generation X (33-48 years old), Baby Boomers (49-67 years old) and the Silent Generation (68-85 years old). Interestingly, Millennials and Generation X had similar taste in the new vehicles they purchased, differing only in order of preference. The Honda Civic, Ford F-150, Honda Accord, Toyota Camry and Chevrolet Silverado 1500 made up the top five for Millennials, while the Generation X list consisted of the Ford F-150, Honda Accord, Chevrolet Silverado 1500, Toyota Camry and Honda Civic. Baby Boomers shared a similarity with Generation X, as the F-150 was also their vehicle of choice. The rest of the top five new vehicles for Baby Boomers were the Chevrolet Silverado 1500, Honda Accord, Toyota Camry and Honda CR-V. The top five for the Silent Generation consisted of the Toyota Camry, Ford F-150, Honda Escape, Honda Accord and Hyundai Sonata. Other findings from the analysis included: • Twenty-five percent of new vehicles financed by the Silent Generation were leases • Generation X and Baby Boomers purchased vehicles with the highest average values in the quarter, $29,494 and $28,764, respectively • Baby Boomers purchased the highest percentage of Hybrid vehicles (47 percent), while Millennials purchased the lowest (9 percent) • Baby Boomers purchased the highest percentage of new import vehicles and new domestic vehicles at 42.5 percent and 43.2 percent, respectively

When a criminal steals your account number and security code, they often are planning to use that account to make purchases. Your credit report is not consulted for purchase transactions. So, in such cases, you should consider contacting your card issuer and request a new account number. At minimum, you should check your account online to see if there has been any activity which you do not recognize. If the criminal’s goal is to open new accounts in your name, then it is likely that one of your three credit reports would be accessed by the potential lender. In that case, you may want to consider adding an alert to your reports. Fraud alerts are special statements consumers can have added to their credit report if they have reason to believe they may be a fraud victim or know that they have been victimized. There are two different fraud alerts: An initial security alert tells lenders that you may be a victim of fraud or identity theft and asks them to take additional measures to verify the identity of the applicant before granting credit in your name. You can request a free copy of your credit report when you request that the alert be added. If you don’t find evidence of fraud, you can have the alert removed, or simply allow it to expire. If you do find evidence of fraud, your next step would be to add an extended security alert, sometimes called a victim statement. You will need a police report or other valid identity theft report to add an extended security alert. The extended security alert states that you are a victim of identity theft and requests that lenders call you to verify your identity before granting credit in your name. An extended security alert remains on your credit report for seven years or until you ask that it be removed. The alerts are included when your report is provided to a lender so they can take appropriate action when the alert is on your report. There is no charge to add a fraud alert. When you do so, Experian notifies the other national credit reporting companies so that alerts can be added to those reports, as well. You can add an alert online at experian.com/fraud, or by calling 1-888-EXPERIAN (1-888-397-3742) and selecting the fraud option.

News of the Target stores security breach has caused many people to ask what they can do to protect themselves from misuse of their stolen identification information. When a criminal steals your account number and security code, they often are planning to use that account to make purchases. Your credit report is not consulted for purchase transactions.  So, in such cases, you should consider contacting your card issuer and request a new account number.  At minimum, you should check your account online to see if there has been any activity which you do not recognize. The system of fraud alerts that has been in place for decades in the credit reporting systems was designed specifically to help people who are identity theft victims, or have reason to believe they may be, to stop credit fraud resulting from that identity theft. In the Target incident and similar data breaches, neither a temporary security alert nor a fraud victim statement on your credit report will stop the thief from using your credit card account. But the alerts may help protect affected consumers from new credit fraud if the identity thief attempts to open new credit accounts using their stolen information. These services are available at no charge to anyone who is a victim of identity theft, or who has reason to believe they may be a victim: Temporary Security Alert (90 days) You can add a temporary, initial security alert to your credit report. You can do so at experian.com/fraud. The alert is free and lasts for 90 days. That gives you time to get a copy of your credit report, which is also free, and ensure there is no credit fraud appearing on your report. The alert is sent every time a lender or other business requests a copy of your credit report. The alert says: Fraudulent applications may be submitted in my name or my identity may have been used without my consent to fraudulently obtain goods or services. Do not extend credit without first verifying the identity of the applicant. I can be reached at XXX-XXX-XXXXEXTXXXXX. This Security Alert will be maintained for 90 days beginning MM-DD-YY. Initial security alerts are intended for people who know or have reason to believe they are at increased risk of credit fraud. For example, they may have lost their wallet or purse, or they may have received a notice that their identifying information was compromised as the result of a computer data breach. For those individuals a temporary security alert may be all that is needed. If they find their wallet or purse, or the data is recovered and has not been accessed, they have no need to continue the alert because the threat no longer exists. Extended Fraud Alert Also known as a victim statement, the extended alert statement says: Fraudulent applications may be submitted in my name or my identity may have been used without my consent to fraudulently obtain goods or services. Do not extend credit without first contacting me personally and verifying all application information at DAY XXX-XXX-XXXXEXTXXXXX or EVENING XXX-XXX-XXXXEXTXXXXX . This victim alert will be maintained for seven years beginning MM-DD-YY. In order to add a victim statement you must first file a police report or valid identity theft report. A victim statement lasts seven years, and like an initial security alert, is provided to every business that requests your credit report. Experian and the other national credit reporting companies share initial security alerts and fraud victim statements when they are requested by a consumer. When one of the credit reporting companies is contacted, it will automatically notify the others to add the alert, as well. The credit reporting companies implemented the one-call process a number of years ago. They recognized the importance of making it as easy as possible for people at high risk of identity theft or who already were victimized to add the alerts so that they could begin the recovery process.

As Senior Vice President of Government Affairs and Public Policy at Experian, I had the opportunity to testify today before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. As always, we continue to welcome the Committee’s interest in the marketing data industry. In the spirit of cooperation, our goal is to help the Committee understand the role our data services play in the economy and in the lives of consumers. Specifically, here are some key points we have shared to help inform the Committee’s work and interest in better understanding the marketplace: Experian believes responsible information sharing enhances economic productivity in the United States and provides many benefits to consumers. Economists have stated the manner in which US companies collect and share consumer information among affiliated entities and third parties is the key ingredient to our nation’s productivity, innovation and ability to compete in the global marketplace. As we discuss this topic, it is vitally important for everyone to understand that there is a clear difference between data that is used to assess eligibility for credit and data that is used to deliver relevant advertising to consumers. These differences are already well recognized under existing law. The data used for marketing purposes is maintained in entirely separate databases that are regulated under various sector-specific privacy laws. Experian marketing data is not used to determine eligibility relating to credit, insurance, employment, housing or other decisions covered by the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Experian has strict policies, as well as technological and procedural controls that ensure this complete separation. Experian has been forthcoming and cooperative throughout this inquiry launched by the Committee over a year ago. We have spent considerable time and resources to ensure that the information and documents we have provided are helpful to the Committee’s work in understanding the marketplace. To date, Experian has provided the Committee with eight submissions totaling over three thousand pages, which we believe provide a full description of our products, services and consumer protections. We have also met with the offices of the Senators on the Committee to describe our practices and respond to any questions about our company, products and services. We have consistently been assured that this inquiry aims to build a general understanding within the Committee of the marketing data ecosystem, and we view this as another good opportunity to educate policy-makers about the benefits of the appropriate use of consumer data. Read the full testimony here.

With less than a month left in the year, what does your to-do list look like? Finish holiday shopping? Jotting down your resolutions for the new year? Or perhaps you plan on heading down to the car dealership to take advantage of the great end of year sale offers. If it’s the latter of the three, you might just be in luck, because it’s a very good time to purchase a new vehicle. According to Experian Automotive’s Q3 State of Automotive Finance Market report, the average interest rate for a new vehicle loan hit 4.27 percent, down from 4.53 percent a year ago. This marks the lowest rate we have seen, since Experian began publicly reporting the data in 2008. The good news doesn’t stop there. Lower interest rates have also given car shoppers the ability to keep payments down when taking out a larger loan. Just as interest rates for new vehicles have hit the lowest point since 2008, the average amount financed has reached its highest point. In Q3, consumers purchasing a new vehicle took out an average loan of $26,719, approximately $750 more than the previous year. Another way we have seen consumers keeping those monthly payments low is by taking out slightly longer loans. The average loan term for a new vehicle was 65 months in Q3, up one month from Q3 2012. This coupled with low interest rates have kept the average monthly payment for a new vehicle relatively flat, only up $6 from last year. Other findings from the report include: • Leasing accounted for 27.22 percent of all new vehicle financing in Q3, up 24.40 percent last year • The average monthly lease payment was $404 in Q3, down from $409 in Q3 2012 • The average credit score for a new vehicle loan dropped to 753 in Q3 2013 from 755 in Q3 2012 • The average credit score for a used vehicle remained flat year-over-year at 668 • Average monthly payments for used vehicles remained flat at $350 For more information on this report, or to attend a webinar discussing additional findings, please visit www.experian.com/automotive.

It was extremely gratifying to see Experian named a Top Workplace by the Orange County Register this week. No surprise to me. (Though I may be partial.) To be sure, this is an important milestone. Although we have been part of the Orange County community for 40+ years, this is the first time we have participated in the Top Workplaces Survey. Additionally – and importantly – this was a recognition that was earned by the feedback of our employees who genuinely appreciate their work environment and the Experian culture. That means we, as a company, are putting the right focus on our employees – or as we prefer to call them, our team members. It was further gratifying when Steve Churm, vice president of the OC Register and Freedom Communications, said: “The Orange County Register's top workplace initiative identifies 100 companies that truly understand the essential link between a positive corporate culture and bottom line performance and growth. Experian is one of those great companies in the heart of Orange County that recognize their key assets are their employees, and that their well-being and growth drives Experian's success.” That speaks volumes to our company’s vision. CEO of Experian North America Victor Nichols sums it up well: “This honor is a reflection of our commitment to excellence and longstanding tradition of creating an enriching and rewarding work environment that benefits our clients, consumers, communities and team members.” In addition to fostering a great work environment, Experian was recognized for being a “socially responsible” company, ranking third amongst large companies in social responsibility. That, too, is a significant recognition given the company’s vast Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives and noting that community involvement is at the heart of Experian. Last year, Experian employees contributed over 18,000 hours in volunteer time for our worldwide philanthropy partners, while raising and donating $6.1 million. In Orange County, the Experian employees from our North American headquarters in Costa Mesa raised $138,000 and volunteered 2,284 hours with important local causes such as CHOC and the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. Dayna Parker, chief human resources officer for Experian North America, shared this: “From our commitment to financial literacy to our ongoing relationships with UCI and the Orange County Business Council, and our volunteerism to Children’s Hospital of Orange County and the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, Experian team members continue to make a difference within the Orange County community. There are a lot of reasons why people love working at Experian, but our commitment to the communities where we work is a big part of our culture and our values.” If you get to know our company, and you get to know our team members and you understand our vision, I’m confident you will appreciate why we are a Top Workplace … and why I wasn’t surprised. This is a great company.

Experian’s fourth annual State of Credit features nationwide data on how four different generations are managing their debts. To provide a more detailed picture of how the nation is faring, we also analyzed over 100 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs). Below are two snapshots of average credit scores and debt for the largest metropolitan areas. This study is an opportunity for consumers to better understand how credit works so they can make more informed financial decisions and live credit smart even in the face of national economic challenges. View our interactive map to learn more. Source: 2013 Experian State of Credit.

A glimpse at average debt in the largest metropolitan areas …   View interactive map: Experian's Fourth Annual State of Credit Report

A glimpse at credit scores in the largest metropolitan areas … View our interactive map: Experian’s Fourth Annual State of Credit Report

Do you want to buy gifts for friends and family this holiday season? Check out these great holiday shopping tips from some of our favorite personal finance writers: 1. Think experience over tangible items Stay sane. I’m not kidding. It’s so easy to lose control and get wrapped up in the feeling of needing everything. Back up and question each purchase. Especially gifts. By March, very few people even remember what they got in December – so is it worth overspending for? Think experience over tangible items. If you’re going to drop some cash, do a party or a trip. That’s what people recall and often value. Right now I’m big into Groupon. I love the goods and getaways Amazing deals! Erica Sandberg is one of the nation’s foremost personal finance authorities. She is editor at large for the Bankrate Inc.‘s subsidiary Credit Card Guide and a columnist and reporter for CreditCards.com 2. Use the Shop Savvy App Shop Savvy is a must-have app for every money-conscious consumer. Scan a product's barcode with the ShopSavvy app and you'll get a price comparison. Which other retailers, online or brick & mortar, sell this product and how much is it going for right now? This app is especially helpful on days like Black Friday where impulse shopping runs is fueled by the frenzy and rush of the moment. If you don't have access to a barcode (aka you are shopping around in advance of making a purchase, which is a good habit and a separate topic), you can look up a product by keyword. Carrie Rocha is the author of of the book and writer behind PocketYourDollars.com 3. Three helpful tools to help you shop Every year I have three tools I use in tandem to help me plan my holiday shopping and save money. The first is Karen McCall's free Holiday Planner which really helps me think through what I most want out of my holidays – and how I plan to pay for it. Then, for those things I will purchase online, I go to RetailMeNot.com to check for coupon codes before I hit the "buy" button. I find that those codes can often be used even with the lowest discounted price, so the savings can really add up. And finally, each year I re-read Mary Hunt's book Debt Proof Your Christmas. It reminds me to focus on what's really important, and think about creating memories – not debt.  Gerri Detweiler, director of consumer education for Credit.com where she writes about credit and debt, along with money-saving strategies for the holidays 4. Save all your receipts The holiday season is a wonderful time to give gifts and share joy with others. But don’t let your seasonal generosity impact your credit for months or even years to come! My best holiday advice is to save all of your receipts! Whenever you make a purchase this holiday season – whether you bought fruitcake for a holiday dinner or the perfect gift for the special someone in your life – keep all of your receipts in an envelope. After the gift giving is done, you still want to be like Santa – checking your list twice! When your credit card statement comes, check each purchase against your receipts. Make sure that the receipts are all correctly reported in your credit card statement and research any discrepancies, such as if your credit card statement reports a higher purchase amount than the receipt or there is an amount on your statement that you do not have a receipt for. And here’s a bonus tip: If you’re buying gifts with a credit card you don’t use very often, or if you signed up for a new store card, make sure you watch for the bill in the mail and pay it in full and on time! Jeanne Kelly is an author, speaker, and coach who helps consumers achieve a higher credit score & understand credit reporting. Visit her online at JeanneKelley.net and follow her on Twitter at @CreditScoop 5. Stay out of credit card debt I think one of the most important issues during the holidays is staying out of credit card debt. Everyone wants to give their families and friends a great holiday and that's totally understandable. But it's a really bad feeling to start out the New Year in debt. Before you start shopping, make a "holiday budget" and decide how much you'll spend on each person. If you have a rewards credit card, use your rewards to save money. For instance, if you need to travel during the holidays, use your miles to save on airfare. Or redeem your points for a gift card at your teen's favorite store. And if you know you can pay the debt off before interest kicks in, then use your rewards card for purchasing gifts. That way, you earn cash back or miles that you can take advantage of in 2014. Beverly Harzog is a nationally recognized credit card expert, consumer advocate, and author of Confessions of a Credit Junkie: Everything you need to know to avoid the mistakes I made. She runs a popular credit card blog on her website, BeverlyHarzog.com 6. Create a personal layaway plan I have two shopping tips – one of which isn't something that fits within the context of "now." I like to save throughout the year for my gifts during the holidays. So I don't wait until the last few months of the year, I start planning roughly how much I want to spend per person and then putting that money into an account. So if I have ten people to buy for and I budget, $100 each, I'll try to put $1,000 in a savings account throughout the year. It's like a self-made layaway plan. That's not really a good tip right now (maybe next year?). My favorite tip that you can do right now is to try to buy everything online. I hate going into stores, especially during the holidays where the mall is always packed, parking is miserable, and people are miserable. You can buy anything online these days and chances are you can save yourself a lot of money when you shop online because prices are better and sales tax is often not collected unless the merchant has a physical location in your state. Jim Wang is the founder of Bargaineering.com and now writes at MicroBlogger.com 7. Buy gifts throughout the year My best tip is to use the whole year for shopping.  Since I already have a list of people to buy for in December, I just hold onto that list – and the ideas I had for them – and look for matching items throughout the year. I have most of my Christmas shopping done and it's only September! Trent Hamm is author of The Simple Dollar and founder of TheSimpleDollar.com 8. No gift policy with close friends. Talk to all your close friends and have a no gift policy. Instead, use some of that money usually spent on wasted gifts and have a great experience together. It could be a simple night out, or even a mini vacation. You'll end up having so much more fun and wondered why everyone concentrates on buying material goods most recipients don't even like in the first place. David Ning is the founder of MoneyNing.com 9. Use these money-saving apps When it comes to holiday shopping, using apps can be one of the best ways you can save money. What are some of the best apps you can use? RedLaser and Price Grabber enable you to comparison shop and find the best deals on the items on your shopping list, SavedPlus automatically causes you to save money each time you make a purchase by depositing a percentage of what you spend from your checking account into your savings account, and Coupon Sherpa or Yowza can help you find coupons to save even more money! With so many easy to use apps to help you save, holiday shopping doesn't have to empty your wallet and can instead help you grow the amount of money in your savings account! Ashley Jacobs is Wise Bread's Community Coordinator and hosts Wise Bread's weekly #WBChat on Twitter 10. Use Evernote to keep track of gift ideas One of my favorite shopping tips is to buy all year as you see interesting things so that you don’t have the pressure on your time, budget, and creativity all hitting you at one time in December. My husband and I do quite a bit of personal travel, so I try to pick up items that represent the area, which makes even a jar of berry jam or spicy mustard special because it came from somewhere else. I often focus on consumables such as jams, unique seasoning mixes, etc. because so many in my family don’t really need to acquire more “stuff.” My "go to" app is Evernote.  If you are shopping online and want to remember a page on a site, you clip it to Evernote and you can tag it (possibly with a name of person you were shopping for). It is a great way to keep ideas from all your devices since it works on PC, pad or phone. Maxine Sweet is the Sr. Vice President of Consumer Education at Experian 11. Plan ahead. The best advice I can give is to plan ahead. If you start by making a list of people on your holiday gift list early – as in, before Thanksgiving – then you can strategically take advantage of any deals that you find. For example, you might notice a Black Friday discount at Toys R Us and use the opportunity to get an affordable gift for your niece or nephew (this article from PT Money has good Black Friday tips). Or use the advance time before the holidays to create thoughtful, low-cost gifts that will make people smile because of the time you put into them rather than how much they cost. But perhaps most importantly, if you plan ahead you can start saving a little bit each month leading up to the holidays and use it to get through December without going over budget. Benjamin Feldman is a writer and personal finance expert at ReadyForZero.com, an online tool for paying off debt and building wealth. You can read his work at ReadyForZero's Debt Free Blog.