Company Offers Credit Reports to Advertisers With Consumers’ Okay

Palo Alto, CA-based MoneyForMail.com, a company that offers cash to people who provide information about themselves, is now offering consumer credit reports. The reports will be offered to MoneyForMail.com’s advertisers after MoneyForMail.com’s members have given their permission for the data to be used. The members will be paid for the information.

The service will be offered in partnership with Trans Union Corp., a leading major national credit reporting agency.

MoneyForMail.com gets consumers’ written permission to obtain their reports. The company is in the process of requesting written permission to get credit reports from its 300,000 members.

The credit data will not be shared directly with advertisers. Instead, advertisers will be able to use the data and other profile information to identify what types of consumers they’d like to reach. MoneyForMail.com will e-mail the ads to consumers who meet the profile.

Trans Union Corporation will provide MoneyForMail.com with both the reports and credit scores, both of which can be used for targeting. Initially, MoneyForMail will contact financial services and insurance companies. Thereafter, the data will be available to all other advertisers.

“Consumers often don’t realize that their credit report is their most valuable asset in negotiating for the best deal on a loan, a mortgage, home owner or auto insurance and, of course, the best credit card rate,” said Gerri Detweiler. president of MoneyForMail.com in a statement. “Now consumers can actually earn cash by allowing advertisers to target them based on their credit history.”