Your Card Issuer Spies on You

Some companies check your credit report frequently so that they can raise your rate if you're late on another card.

I recently received my credit report and was astonished to find that my ATT Universal MasterCard had 21 account-review inquiries from the card issuer, almost monthly for two years. I have had this card since 1991 without late payments or credit problems. Is this number of inquiries unusual? Will it affect my credit score?

Make room for Big Brother. It's common practice for card issuers -- in your case, Citibank -- to keep tabs on their account holders every month. "We use the information to increase or decrease a credit line, or to make customers a balance-transfer offer," says Citigroup spokesman Samuel Wang.

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Kimberly Lankford
Contributing Editor, Kiplinger's Personal Finance

As the "Ask Kim" columnist for Kiplinger's Personal Finance, Lankford receives hundreds of personal finance questions from readers every month. She is the author of Rescue Your Financial Life (McGraw-Hill, 2003), The Insurance Maze: How You Can Save Money on Insurance -- and Still Get the Coverage You Need (Kaplan, 2006), Kiplinger's Ask Kim for Money Smart Solutions (Kaplan, 2007) and The Kiplinger/BBB Personal Finance Guide for Military Families. She is frequently featured as a financial expert on television and radio, including NBC's Today Show, CNN, CNBC and National Public Radio.