When dealing with a credit bureau, understand that they are in the business of collecting and selling information — nothing more, nothing less!

For this simple reason, it is in your best interest to never provide them with any information that is not legally necessary. Legally, you only really need to provide a credit bureau with your name, social security number and legal address in order to obtain your credit report. They may request a copy of your social security card, and if the address they have on file is different from your current one, they may also ask for a copy of something with that new address on.

Now, if they ask for a driver’s license to prove your address, instead send them a copy of a bill showing your address. The reason you want to be cautious when dealing with credit bureaus is that they own many collection agencies, and if you have a credit problem you want to give them as little information as possible with which to harass you with (note: a driver’s license has TOO much information on it).

By learning how to properly handle the credit bureaus, you’ll be able to effectively engage in the same credit repair that some companies change exorbitant fees for. By educating yourself as to the legal obligations of the credit bureau, you can, in many cases, find less expensive ways to fix your credit problems both quickly and effectively.