Does anyone know which credit agency is used when pulling credit info? I have heard “The big 3”, which to me usually sounds like a non-answer as it isn’t specific and I assume the big 3 companies aren’t giving out free credit reports to the Federal Government without a court order, so there is some type of federal business contract with one in specific - So how do pull credit reports with 3 different agencies? or is it really just one of the three?
The main reason I ask : For some reason the Experian version reports some stuff that is completely different erroneous/wrong compared to Equifax, TransUnion and reality in general. I reported exactly what my Equifax report says on my SF-86 and have since submitted it for a T3 level investigation. The Equifax and TransUnion is the correct version and backs up the credibility to what I am saying. Yes, I know about the dispute process but my question above remains the same.
You already named the three they use. You also stated the reason for using not just one, but all three, because of the differences that each report. OPM (and several other government agencies) have contracts with companies that pull what is called a tri-merge credit report using the data from all three rolled into one report.
I saw my credit pulled via an Experian credit monitoring service. Interestingly, when I did a TransUnion report it didn’t show up. This was due to OPM pulling a soft report which may not show up on certain types of reports or monitoring services.
Credit was pulled a month after my SF86 submittal and coincided with my JPAS entry showing investigation started.
Ah, okay. Well if one is reporting erroneous stuff while the other two are reporting the correct stuff is that going to factor into the investigation? As in, my SF-86 is filled out correctly, but if you look at the Experian report, its going to show the wrong thing. I am disputing it right now, but I am worried they already pulled the credit report and it takes up to 30 days for them to fix the fudge up.
Disclose everything during your interview and be sure to provide proof of any discrepancies in your credit report. The Investigator will address your issue during the interview.
I am military. I do not believe we do interviews for the T3 like civlians do. We had a “security interview” prior to enlisting but that was with a representative of the military and not an investigator from OPM…We don’t have the same access to the investigator or security offices as civilians do. So there is no clear path for me to reach out to anybody at OPM…
Fighter - you do interviews for the T3 like the civilians - and OPM has been doing your investigations since at least 2003.
If you find a discrepancy like that on your credit report - list it. If the financial issues meet the criteria for an interview (not all do - don’t ask the criteria as I won’t discuss them), bring copies of the letters to/form the credit provider/credit reporting company to your interview demonstrating to the adjudicator that the debts are actively being disputed. You will want to give a copy of any information where the creditor or credit reporting company admits the error or will correct the error.
Subject interviews for T3 are applicable to military members, although not always triggered. I’ve had several clearance reinvestigations in my military career and have had a subject interview for my T5 but not for my T3.
You have a security rep in your unit if not then the organization above your unit. They can do you a solid and inquire as to the status of your investigation. Ask your supervisor who this person is for your org.
Go and get a credit report from Experian. I used the Trusted ID product. It was free to me since my data was comprised by ATT. You can see what the OPM saw.
If all is as you say it is, just clarify IF asked during an interview. Maybe you won’t trigger an interview?