A couple of weeks ago I applied for a credit card at a big-box store for the short-term 0% financing. I was declined and received a letter stating it was because my 'behavioral risk score' was low at 541 due to 'High risk due to lack of credit bureau data' and 'Low level of authentication indicative of fraud.'
I figured I had a good chance of being accepted - my credit score from Experian, Equifax, & TransUnion are all between 700-720. I've only got one (secured) credit card at the moment which I've used to help build up my credit. I've looked at my credit reports and they look okay. No loans/accounts open (I paid off student loans last year), no debts, only a few credit inquiries over the past couple of years. As far as I am aware, I should have a pretty good standing with my payments and my bank.
I did some research on the topic, but all that I could really find is that the internal behavioral risk score is not consumer-available information and that it uses a lot more personal and financial information than a typical credit report.
What is this score? If I have decent credit already, what can I do to improve this hidden score? If I don't have access to this 'hidden' information, how can I go about challenging the low score or addressing possible errors?
Submitted June 19, 2017 at 07:16PM by Kojaks http://ift.tt/2sjQNIc
