A person's credit report contains their complete credit repayment history and is
the basis for their credit score. This score measures the likelihood that they will
repay what they owe and is used by lenders to assess risk, before they lend. The credit
report data comes from our Credit Services business line, so a person can see what
lenders see about them. Using our interactive tools, they can then routinely monitor
their credit and identify ways to improve their credit score. People may also use
their credit status for a one-off event, such as negotiating the best deal for a large
credit-dependent purchase, like a car.
Our identity protection services provide people with identity theft detection,
protection and fraud resolution. We monitor the information in a person's credit report
and let them know about changes that might be identity fraud. In the event of fraud,
we give people access to a dedicated fraud resolution service, together with insurance
against financial loss. We also help parents to monitor their children's online activity,
with our Safetyweb.com services.
Our DataPatrol product provides real-time web and social network monitoring, to help
prevent identity fraud before it happens.
We currently offer credit reports and scores in the US through Experian.com, CreditReport.com
and freecreditscore.com,
and through CreditExpert.co.uk
in the UK. We also offer identity protection services in the US and the UK, through
ProtectMyID.com and ProtectMyID.co.uk respectively. This year in the US we are giving
greater prominence to the Experian brand, underscoring the trust consumers have in
it. We are also launching Consumer Services in other countries, such as Brazil.