BJ (00:01)
Hello everyone and welcome to another edition of Privacy Tips. This is your podcast for stupid, sexy privacy. I'm your host, BJ Mendelson. Today's show is made possible by our friends at DuckDuckGo. So if enjoy what we do, check out our DuckDuckGo subscription. It comes with a simple and easy to use VPN, identity theft protection, data removal service, and more. Additional information can be found at DuckDuckGo.com slash subscribe. And some features and offerings will vary.

based on your location. Now my friends, I mentioned before that Dr. Timothy Snyder's On Tyranny is a foundational text for stupid, sexy privacy. And one of the points Dr. Snyder makes is the limit the number of ways a tyrant can get their hooks into you. So although you've probably heard this advice before, and I'm pretty sure a large language model can write this post with its eyes closed, I'm gonna recommend you get a free credit report. All you need to do is visit annualcreditreport.com.

You can also call 877-322-8228. The number again is 877-322-8228 or using the method.

Or using the method I suggest you use, can download the credit request form and send it by mail to annualcreditreportrequestservice.po box 105281, Atlanta, Georgia, 30348-5281. That address again is annualcreditreportrequestservice.po box 105281, Atlanta, Georgia, 30348-5281.

On that form, make sure to select the options on the bottom to get a credit report from all three credit reporting agencies. So that's Aquafax, Experian, and TransUnion before you send it in. And make sure your handwriting is legible because otherwise they're going to kick it back and say, ⁓ you need to do this again. I don't know what this means. that an S? True story. I'm outing myself.

being like just having terrible handwriting. Anyway, just a note about whether you want to put something in the mail or fill out a form online, not just for this, but for anything. It really depends on your threat level. So if you've taken extreme steps, for example, to hide your location, general whereabouts, putting this form in the mail, using something like a personal mailbox or any number of things, that's totally fine. That's probably the best. But for most people, in most cases, which is what this show focuses on,

using the annualcreditreport.com website is totally fine. That said, I do want to take a moment just to talk about some of the benefits that come with using the postal service, just so you can understand why people would do that. So the extreme privacy people will argue that it's to use the post office for three reasons. Well, actually two, and then I'm giving you like my one, and that's the one we'll start with. So like my reason is that you're supporting the United States Postal Service.

And like I mentioned, throughout this project, I'm going to suggest you pick one institution in our country to uphold. So mine is the United States Postal Service. So whenever possible, I'm always going to try to find ways to spend money at the postal.

I'm always going to try to find ways to spend money at the local post office. Now here I to like, you know, extreme or maximum privacy reasons. So like with a privacy notebook, you take the stuff you do offline more seriously than the stuff you do online. So what that means is like, if you're taking a minute to like print this form and take it to the post office and then examine the documentation that you get that comes in the mail, it means you're more likely to actually stop and look at the thing.

as opposed to, you you get a PDF and you kind of scroll through it on your laptop where you could be distracted by a dozen of other things. So, you know, there's always the possibility where you need to look at these things carefully and you just miss something, right? Because you were distracted. Whereas if it comes in the mail, you could sit down away from your computer and go through it. And then finally, like on the, on the like total extreme privacy front, the less you do online, the better, right? That's a good rule for anyone. But especially if you, if you have reasons where you're trying to protect your anonymity, let's say.

The less you do online, the better. So you can always have this information sent to a personal mailbox, as I mentioned. Instead, if you're an actual address, there's a lot of different ways you can send and receive mail if you're doing the maximum privacy thing. These credit reports are also a great way to see if you're using a personal mailbox, if the personal mailbox has been picked up by any of these data brokers or any companies out there that are collecting information on you. So it's a good tool to keep an eye and make sure that the stuff you're trying to keep

safe and anonymous. It's still kept safe and anonymous. So, it's a bath wall.

So all that said, I'm gonna assume here that for most people, in most cases, most of you have decided to fill out the form on the website, which again, is totally fine. Just make sure that if you're looking through a PDF, I know it's gonna be a big report and you're gonna have to print a lot of pages, but if you can print it and it's not gonna cost you money or be a burden, that's my, I encourage you to print it. If not, do your best. So.

Here's the bad news about getting a free credit report, just no matter how you choose to get it. Aside from a few exceptions, you can only do this once a year. So when you get your information, what you want to do is take out the paper calendar, which I always encourage people to use, and mark the date that you put in your request. And when you buy your next paper calendar for the following year, circle the exact date that you put in the request that you know you have to submit your report again. Because this is going be real important. You want to do this every single year.

This is really important because you want to do this every single year. This is one of those things that you want to regularly check in on. So now we're going to get into what to do with these credit reports a bit later in this series. But right now I just want you to take the first step and get yours. And before we finish up this week, let's talk about what the exceptions are to the once per year rule. Because there are some cases where you don't have to wait a whole ass year to get your next credit report. So for example, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which is the CFPB,

which by the way is another institution like the post office, deserving of your support. You can get an additional free credit report if, and this is a quote, so bear with me here while I read it, quote, you received a notice that you were denied credit, insurance or employment, or experienced another quote, adverse action based on a credit report. In this case, you have a right to a free report from the credit reporting company identified in that notice.

To get the free report, you must request it within 60 days after you receive the notice. Other types of quote adverse action notices that you might receive include a notice of let's say unfavorable change in terms of amount of your credit or insurance coverage or unfavorable changes in terms of your employment or of a license or other government benefits. So if you lose something, if you lose your job or you lose a license or you lose social security benefits, whatever reason like those are.

what they consider adverse actions that would require you or that would enable you to get another credit report instead of waiting a whole year. So honestly, I was going to link to the CFPB website instead of reading that to you, but we can't really trust the stuff put out by the federal government right now. I hope that changes in the future, but I just, at the time of this recording, I didn't feel comfortable doing that. So one more thing on this one, according to the CFPB at the time of this recording,

The other exceptions to the once per year rule are as follows. You believe your file is inaccurate due to fraud. That's a big one. That's one of the impacts millions of people across the United States every year. Another is you have requested a credit report from nationwide credit reporting company in connection with placing initial fraud alert on your credit file. And in that circumstance, you may request two free copies for an extended fraud alert.

Another instance is if you're unemployed and intend to apply for employment within 60 days from the day of your request. If you're the recipient of a public welfare assistance such as Medicaid to Social Security. Or if your state law provides also for a free credit report. So I will do my best to put together a list of what states allow for that. But until then, go to DuckDuckGo, search your state and see if your state's law entitles you to a free credit report. Because then you can do one every six months, which I think is cool.

and probably necessary these days. So if you haven't gotten your annual credit report just yet, which is a lot of people, I encourage you to do so. And while you're at it, make sure to freeze your credit until you actually have to utilize it. It's so important. You're gonna call up Experian, you're gonna call up TransUnion, you're gonna call up Equifax, and you're gonna say, I wanna freeze my credit until I'm ready to use it. And then when you wanna take off that freeze, all you gotta do is call them back and say, all right, I'm gonna go buy car, right? Or I'm gonna go apply for a credit card.

and I'm going to need my credit now. Please take the freeze off. We'll talk about that later, but while you're thinking about it, these are things that people don't usually think about that we, you we talk about getting people to be 1 % better, right, at protecting themselves from fascists and weirdos. So everyone freezing their credit is a big deal. Everyone getting their credit report is a big deal. So if you're listening to the show and you know someone who hasn't done this, please encourage them to do so.

Today's episode of Privacy Tips was recorded in Hollywood, California and is sponsored by DuckDuckGo It was written, produced, and hosted by me, BJ Mendelson. Before we go, I want to give a shout out to the production team at Stupid Sexy Privacy, which includes Andrew Van Voorhis, Rosie Tran, and Amanda King, and of course, our friends at DuckDuckGo. If you enjoyed today's show, we hope you'll take a moment to leave us a review on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you may be listening. This won't take more than two minutes of your time.

You see, we have this crazy goal and I just mentioned it, but I'm gonna mention it again. And we need your help to achieve it. We want 5 % of Americans to be 1 % better at protecting themselves from fascists and weirdos. Leaving us a review can help make that happen. That's because your reviews will help other people find the show. So please take a moment to leave us a review and we'll see you next time on Privacy Tips.

So please take a moment to leave us a review and we'll see you next time on Privacy Tips.