Consumers’ confidence in the present-day state of the economy is at a 27-year low, and more people may be watching their finances closely as the nation’s recovery continues to be slow.

The Conference Board reported this week that its overall Consumer Confidence Index declined from 56.5 in January to 46.0 in February, and consumers’ opinion on current economic conditions was especially depressed. The current conditions index reads just 19.4 this month.

Confidence is not likely to pick up until the employment situation improves. Unemployment is still near double digits – and even people who are still employed are fearful of being downsized.

The still-mediocre economic picture is leading many people to keep a close eye on their spending and credit scores: Some may turn to credit monitoring services, which give consumers a real-time look at the status of their credit reports. With the economy in tatters, fraudulent activity is likely to increase – and identity theft could become more prevalent as criminals get desperate.

But, the Federal Trade Commission says, “awareness is an effective weapon against many forms of identity theft.” And some consumers are discovering that credit monitoring can be a great way to stay informed.

CreditReport.com is a pioneer and industry leader on the field of Consumer Credit Information Management (CCIM). Since 1996 we have helped millions of consumers to better manage and protect their credit so that decisions creditors and others make about them are based on accurate information.

We are authorized to provide consumers with access to their credit reports at the three national credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, and we do so 24 hours a day, every day of the year. We are continually seeking to push the envelope to provide consumers with innovative tools that give consumers every possible advantage to successfully navigate through the confusing credit industry.

Through our credit-related services consumers are able to review their credit reports and score, monitor their credit at all three bureaus, receive automatic email alerts when their credit report or score changes and submit disputes when they spot an error in their credit report.

We believe the potential for this industry is limited only by our own creativity—something that has never been in short supply at CreditReport.com.

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