Have you recently checked your credit score on some websites and then been bombarded with pesky calls asking you to take a personal loan or a credit card?
A credit score is an important financial parameter that one should check regularly. A low credit score might make it difficult to get a loan or may come at a higher interest rate.
There are four credit bureaus in India: TransUnion CIBIL, Equifax, CRIF Highmark, and Experian. All these sites display your credit score.
You need to check your credit score to know whether any recent action has affected your credit score. Anything that lowers your credit score should be avoided. For example, multiple inquiries about a credit card will affect your credit score and should be avoided.
It is also important to check your credit score because some misreporting might adversely affect your credit score. If you notice any discrepancy, you should report it immediately to the concerned credit bureau.
“If you check your credit score from an unauthorized source like a loan aggregator, your data can be compromised. You might end up getting unwanted spam calls for credit cards and loans. Also, you will not know how they might use that data. They might sell it, record and use it for fraud, etc. So, it is better to be safe than sorry,” says Anant Ladha, founder, Invest Aaj For Kal, a financial advisory firm.
Always check your credit score from the credit union websites or apps like OneScore, which provides credit scores from CIBIL and Experian for free. They will also not sell your data, and you will not receive those spam calls. Remember, your credit score is not impacted if you check it several times. However, it could be impacted if multiple lenders check your credit score.
When checking your credit score, never do it from a link sent in the mail, as it may be made to look like a link from an authorised source, and you may become the victim of a phishing scam where fraudsters steal sensitive data from you. Also, never key in sensitive information to get a ‘free’ credit score.
Sometimes when you have a low credit score, you may get messages or emails that offer you a loan even with a low score. Such emails are mainly fraud and are meant to seek out high-risk borrowers who are not likely to fall behind on their loan payments and thus incur high fees and penalties.
Your credit score is like a health report, so it is vital to use it wisely.
