Identity theft is a form of stealing someone’s identity in which someone pretends to be someone else by assuming that person’s identity, typically in order to access resources or obtain credit and other benefits in that person’s name. The victim of identity theft (here meaning the person whose identity has been assumed by the identity thief) can suffer adverse consequences if they are held accountable for the perpetrator’s actions.

Credit card issuers are ramping up lending to consumers with poor credit but borrowers beware — the terms aren’t always going to be good. Lending to subprime consumers — typically those with a FICO credit score of below 660 — climbed 41% last year, with banks issuing 1.1 million new credit cards to riskier consumers, a four-year high, according to a recent report from credit reporting agency Equifax.

No consumer is prevented from acquiring credit solely based on marital status. The Equal Opportunity Credit Act outlaws discrimination of all forms to provide consumers with equal access to credit resources. If you recently experienced a divorce, however, your credit score may be negatively impacted after you separate from your spouse.

Debt settlement, also known as debt arbitration, debt negotiation or credit settlement, is an approach to debt reduction in which the debtor and creditor agree on a reduced balance that will be regarded as payment in full.

If you find errors or inaccuracies in your credit history file, you will have to submit a dispute letter or request to each of the credit bureaus on which the mistake appears. In some cases you may be able to dispute the error with online forms, but in some cases you’ll have to submit a letter with your corroborating documents.