IN THIS LESSON

All credit reporting agencies are required by U.S. law to provide consumers with one free credit report every year.

Equifax Inc. is an American multinational consumer credit reporting agency headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, and is one of the three largest consumer credit reporting agencies.
Equifax collects and aggregates information on over 800 million individual consumers and more than 88 million businesses worldwide.
In addition to credit and demographic data and services to businesses, Equifax sells credit monitoring and fraud prevention services directly to consumers.
Equifax operates or has investments in 24 countries in the Americas, Europe, and Asia Pacific.
With over 14,000 employees worldwide, Equifax has nearly US$5 billion in annual revenue and is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the symbol EFX.
Additional information about Equifax

Experian is a multinational data analytics and consumer credit reporting company headquartered in Dublin, Ireland with US headquarters in Costa Mesa, CA.
Experian collects and aggregates information on over 1 billion people and businesses, including 235 million individual U.S. consumers and more than 25 million U.S. businesses.
The company operates in 37 countries, with offices in Brazil, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
The company employs approximately 17,000 people and had a reported revenue of US$5.18 billion for the fiscal year ending in March 2020. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. Experian is a partner in USPS address validation.
In addition to its credit services, Experian also sells decision analytic and marketing assistance to businesses, including individual fingerprinting and targeting. Its consumer services include online access to credit history and products meant to protect from fraud and identity theft.
Additional information about Experian

TransUnion collects and aggregates information on over one billion individual consumers in over thirty countries, including "200 million files profiling nearly every credit-active consumer in the United States". Its customers include over 65,000 businesses.
Based in Chicago, Illinois, TransUnion's 2014 revenue was US$1.3 billion. It is the smallest of the "Big Three"
TransUnion also markets credit reports and other credit and fraud-protection products directly to consumers.
Additionally, a growing segment of TransUnion's business is its business offerings that use advanced big data, particularly its deep AI-TLOxp product.
Additional information about TransUnion

Primary: First source credit data provider for the customer

Secondary: Second source of credit data provider for the customer

Tertiary: Third source of credit data provider for the customer

Zip Preference Tables: Some large customers classify positions based on geographic territory (zip code)

Lesson 1: Credit Reporting Agencies