January 6, 2025
Prioritize Your Credit During Financial Wellness Month
January 6, 2024
January is Financial Wellness Month, a perfect reminder to take control of your financial health following the busy, and often expensive, holiday season. While many people focus on budgeting and saving, it’s equally important to protect yourself from cybercrime, which poses a growing threat to financial stability. Cybercriminals often target personal information to commit identity theft, open fraudulent accounts, or damage your credit — actions that can take years to recover from.
That’s where an identity theft protection service like IDSeal comes in. By offering robust credit monitoring, data breach alerts, and proactive safeguards for your personal information, IDSeal helps you defend against threats and maintain your financial health. This means you can focus on other cornerstones of financial health, like keeping a strong credit score, which is a key factor in your ability to achieve financial goals such as buying a home, securing a loan, or even landing a new job.
Why Your Credit Score Matters
Your credit score is more than just a number; it’s a snapshot of your financial reliability. Lenders, landlords, and even employers use this number to assess how well you manage your finances and therefore how likely you are to repay loans on time. A high credit score signals that you’re a trustworthy borrower, which can lead to lower interest rates, better loan approval chances, and enhanced financial opportunities such as qualifying for premium credit cards. On the other hand, a poor credit score can make it difficult to access financial services and often results in higher costs when you do.
Tips for Improving and Maintaining Your Credit Score
1. Pay Bills on Time
Payment history accounts for 35% of your credit score, making it the most significant factor. Late payments can have a lasting negative impact, so consider setting up automatic payments or reminders to ensure bills are paid promptly.
2. Monitor Your Credit Utilization
Credit utilization — the ratio of your credit card balances to your credit limits — should ideally stay below 30%. High utilization can indicate financial strain, so try to pay down balances and spend within your means.
3. Check Your Credit Reports Regularly
Errors on your credit report can drag down your score. With IDSeal’s Premier Pro plan, you can request a three-bureau (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) credit report twice per year, which is more than you’ll get with most other identity theft protection services. By pulling your credit report regularly, you’ll be able to spot and dispute inaccuracies before they impact your credit score.
4. Limit New Credit Applications
Every time you apply for credit, a hard inquiry is added to your credit report, which can temporarily lower your score. Be selective about when and where you apply for new credit.
5. Keep Old Accounts Open
The length of your credit history impacts your score, so even if you no longer use a particular credit card, keeping the account open can benefit your credit history.
Protecting Your Credit from Cyberthreats
In today’s digital age, keeping your credit score high goes hand-in-hand with protecting your financial information. Cybercriminals are constantly looking for ways to exploit personal data, which can lead to identity theft, fraudulent accounts, and damage to your credit score. It’s essential to use strong passwords and enable multi-factor authentication, an added layer of security to keep bad actors from accessing your online banking and credit accounts.
In addition, avoid using public Wi-Fi for financial transactions since they can be vulnerable to hackers. A secure network or Virtual Private Network (VPN) is the best way to access financial accounts online. Lastly, stay up to date on changes to your credit report through a credit monitoring service. IDSeal sends alerts of any suspicious activity so you can respond to threats to your personal information before lasting damage is done.
A Holistic Approach to Financial Wellness
While credit is a crucial component of financial wellness, it’s not the only factor. Building a budget, setting savings goals, and reducing debt are equally important. Start by evaluating your monthly income and expenses to create a budget that aligns with your financial priorities. Establish an emergency fund with at least three to six months’ worth of living expenses and tackle high-interest debt to free up more money for savings and investments.
By striving to maintain a high credit score, safeguard your personal information, and take a proactive approach to budgeting and saving, you can set yourself up this January for a year of financial success.
Let IDSeal help you stay on top of your credit and protect your financial future. With robust identity monitoring and device protection services, you can focus on achieving your goals without the worry of financial fraud.
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