You need to monitor your credit three times per year to check for the possibility of identity theft.  I'm sure you know that, by law ,you are entitled to a free credit report once each year. 

But, did you realize that means you can actually monitor your credit three times per year - once, thru each of the three national credit repositories - Equifax, Experian and Trans Union?

Here's a great website you can use - www.annualcreditreport.com.  A good way to make this work is to check one repository every four months.  So, in January, check your credit thru Equifax.  In May, check your credit thru Experian.  Then in September, use Trans Union.  This gives you an opportunity to monitor your credit three times per year - for FREE.

Identity theft is running rampant on a national level and is the fastest growing crime in the US.  The incidence of identity theft has risen 22% since 2007.  In 2008 there were 10 million victims of this crime.

While this system will not keep someone from stealing your identity it does give you a way to monitor your credit more frequently to catch anything that might be amiss before it has a chance to get out of control.

www.annualcreditreport.com is a totally free site and does not require any membership fees and no hidden charges.  Try it!  It just could be the best money you never spent.