Privacy Matters 123 ripoff, no credit report, automated customer service Des Plaines Illinois

I'm a former employee of the company that is responsible for privacy matters 123 and am glad to no longer be there.

A few comments on many posts I have read:

1) Believe it or not, they're not a rip off. They are a legitimate company, if disorganized and unethical. You *can* access an unlimited number of three in one reports through the membership, but it helps if you're computer literate. If you can not access your report, and the steps are fairly clear, then that is not the fault of the company.

Having said that, all you have to do is login through privacymatters123.com, choose member login, enter your ID and zip, then enter the credit report tab. Then choose the option that instructs you to set up a credit center username and ID and start entering your information (yes, it is secure. no, the information is not mined. the information goes to transunion, not privacy matters).


2) Yes, it is made clear that you are enrolling in a program and not just getting a free report online. This fact is stated on the website, in the terms and conditions and in the email that is sent to you. If you did not enter a valid email, that is not the company's problem, but they'll send you written material anyway, just so you're aware that yo'ure enrolled. Yes, you did authorize them to bill your account when you accepted the terms and conditions and didn't respond to cancel your membership. No, no one sold them your credit card information, nor did it emerge from thin air. YOU or someone YOU know did it.

3) Be very careful. In my experience, miscommunication between customers and customer service reps was not uncommon. I have been accused of not cancelling a membership when I was asked to, when in fact i've always cancelled them. I've never left them open without consent.

There may also be some unscrupulous reps who may try and confuse you deliberately. Make sure at the end of your call that you confirm that the membership is cancelled and get a first name and ID number for the person cancelling your membership.

5) Don't be pissed off because you've been billed for four years and never noticed. Don't expect reimbursement for it. You're paying for the service to be available, not for it's actual use. If you did not use it and did not notice it, that is not the company's problem.

6) Don't take your wrath out on the customer service rep. They've done nothing wrong and many times they don't realize how it all works until they've worked their for a little while. CSR's have little power in the grand scheme of thing. Being nice to the person goes a long way, because that's when they're willing to bend rules for you. NOT when you're behaving abusively. That is when the CSR follows policy to the letter.

7) cancel by phone with the automated service, or by speaking to a rep or by visiting the website and logging in.