Master Charge Credit Services

Free Credit Reports

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies – Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion – to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, enforces the FCRA with respect to consumer reporting companies.

To order your free credit reports, visit annualcreditreport.com, call 1-877-322-8228, or complete the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mail it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. The form is available for printing at http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/menus/consumer/credit/reports.shtm.

Reporting Credit Card Fraud

If you lose or have had your credit card stolen, you should immediately report it to your card issuer. Once you report the incident, you are no longer responsible for unauthorized charges made on your card.

If you are a merchant and you suspect orders have been placed for your products/services using stolen credit card information you will need to contact VISA/MC/AMEX/DISCOVER to obtain the issuing bank's phone number then call the bank to report that you suspect that their customer's credit card information has been stolen.

Fraud Alert

You have the right to ask that nationwide consumer credit reporting companies place "fraud alerts" in your file to let potential creditors and others know that you may be a victim of identity theft. A fraud alert can make it more difficult for someone to get credit in your name because it tells creditors to follow certain procedures to protect you. It also may delay your ability to obtain credit. You may place a fraud alert in your file by calling just one of the three nationwide consumer credit reporting companies. As soon as that agency processes your fraud alert, it will notify the other two, which then also must place fraud alerts in your file.

• Equifax: 1-877-576-5734; www.equifax.com
• Experian: 1-888-397-3742; www.experian.com/fraud
• TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289; www.transunion.com

An initial fraud alert stays in your file for at least 90 days. An extended alert stays in your file for seven years. To place either of these alerts, a consumer credit reporting company will require you to provide appropriate proof of your identity, which may include your Social Security number. If you ask for an extended alert, you will have to provide an identity theft report. An identity theft report includes a copy of a report you have filed with a federal, state, or local law enforcement agency. For more detailed information about the identity theft report, visit www.consumer.gov/idtheft.

OnGuardOnline.gov provides practical tips from the federal government and the technology industry to help you be on guard against phishing and internet fraud, secure your computer, and protect your personal information.

Master Charge was originally created by United California Bank with the "Master Charge" name being licensed from the First National Bank of Louisville, Kentucky in 1967. With the help of New York's Marine Midland Bank, now HSBC Bank USA, these banks joined with the Interbank Card Association (ICA) to create "Master Charge: The Interbank Card".

Master Charge was developed as a competitor to the BankAmericard credit card issued by Bank of America. BankAmericard is now the VISA credit card, issued by Visa International.

In 1979, "Master Charge: The Interbank Card" was renamed simply "MasterCard®".

MasterCharge.org™

MasterCharge.org™ provides consumer and commercial credit research services.

MasterCharge.org™ is not affiliated with MasterCard®. All trademarks once associated with the "Master Charge" name as it applies to credit services and/or credit cards have since expired. Independent verification may be achieved by searching the United States Patent And Trademark Office database.