Category: Wikipedia

credit score, utilization ratio, Moneyland, Time Magazine, Time Warner Inc.

From: Greg Fisher [mailto:greg@creditscoring.com]
Sent: Monday, December 19, 2011 2:54 PM
To: Jeffrey L. Bewkes, chairman of the board and CEO, Time Warner Inc.
Cc: Scott Medintz, editor, MoneyLand, Time Magazine; Scott Medintz, editor, MoneyLand, Time Magazine; Chris Farrell, economics editor, Marketplace Money, American Public Media; Ian R. Friendly, chair, Board of Trustees, Minnesota public Radio and executive vice president, chief operating officer, U.S. Retail, General Mills
Subject: RE: credit score, myth, proportion of balances, Time Warner Inc.

See this message and your response at https://blog.creditscoring.com/?p=3051, https://blog.creditscoring.com/?cat=134 and https://blog.creditscoring.com/?tag=time-warner.

You published, “When it comes to your score, 30% consists of the amounts you owe in relation to your available credit — an equation called your utilization ratio.”

Either your source misled you or your math is off.  Who is your source regarding your claim of the 30 percent importance of the so-called “utilization ratio”?  It is, indeed, a myth.

Earlier this month, another journalist made a correction about the same issue.  However, he failed to provide the source for his original claim.  Peculiarly, even the article to which his story links calls it a myth.

And, who calls it “utilization ratio,” anyway?

—
Greg Fisher
The Credit Scoring Site
creditscoring.com
PO Box 342
Dayton, Ohio  45409-0342

[previous email attached]

Wikipedia’s Jimmy wales on myth about employers using credit scores

When the person most associated with Wikipedia edits a Wikipedia article, it’s news.  But, today, his side–the truth–is losing.  Here is what has happened, so far.

December 8.  Wikipedian user 168.103.203.229 adds “Employers look at a[SIC] applicants[SIC] credit score prior to offering a position for employment and has[SIC] stirred controversy in many states,” a bogus (if not, ungrammatical) claim.  It is the first and last entry by that user.

December 10. @creditscoring tweets “Christmas came early this year. https://blog.creditscoring.com/?p=2997 So, #nowwhat, @jimmy_wales and #wikipedia?”

December 11. @jimmy_wales removes the inaccurate information.  The revision states, “rm unsourced controversial claim.”

December 12. Wikipedia user Cookiehead adds, “In 2009, TransUnion representatives testified before the Connecticut legislature about their practice of marketing credit score reports to employers for use in the hiring process.”

December 13. @creditscoring tweets “.@jimmy_wales TransUnion testifies on credit scores in employment. https://blog.creditscoring.com/?p=3013.”

The link connects to a quote of a TransUnion official who (in 2009 and before the Connecticut legislature, no less) testified, “Now, credit scores aren’t used in employment decisions so let’s get that straight.”

 

Christmas comes early: Wikipedia on credit scores and employers

Santa came early this year.

The 2011 holly jolly folly (by golly) from Wikipedia is the credit-scores-are-used-by-employers myth.  The silly website (some dude called Jimbo has something to do with it) says, “Employers look at a[SIC] applicants[SIC] credit score prior to offering a position for employment and has stirred controversy in many states.”

Wikipedia looks like an encyclopedia, but is really just a message board.  What will happen next?

Critique of Wikipedia – The silence is broken (for naught)

This has not happened in over a year.  Before Monday’s edit of the Wikipedia article Credit score (United States), 38 days had passed with no edits.  The last time that happened was November, 2009, when the span was 40 days.

Unfortunately, the new edits were of no substance.

The message board masquerading as an encyclopedia still misinforms anybody reading it. Its U.S. Credit score article falsely states that the so-called credit utilization ratio accounts for 30 percent of the FICO score, while the FICO company itself illustrates that that is not true.  The misinformation is now in its 7th year.  Ironically, the editor changed punctuation in that portion of the article, but failed to notice, indeed, the error of fact he was editing.  On the other hand, however, he makes no claims to credit score expertise in his profile: “Anime, manga, and science fiction fan; copy editor and wikifier—scourge of incorrect dashes and capitalization. ^_^.”

:(

Even the Federal Reserve appears to have used wiki-nonsense in federal testimony.  If that is true, then Wikipedia is the Fed’s source, while the Fed is Wikipedia’s source.  So, who’s in charge, here?

The Wikipedian has been wiki-decorated with the WikiMedal for Janitorial Services, and his wikipage is festooned with the official wikimedallion.

At least they don’t take themselves too seriously.

Nobody should.

Wikipedia misstates median average FICO credit score

The current Wikipedia article “Credit score” states, “In the United States, FICO risk scores range from 300-850, with 723 being the median FICO score of Americans in 2010.”

“In 2010,” was added on March 9, 2011 by Wikipedia user Primeonetx, part of his or her sole, albeit inaccurate and influential, contribution to the world’s knowledge, made in a drive-by.

That is an inaccurate statement, since credit score company FICO admits that the national media and mean average FICO credit scores are secret.  So, the Wikipedians (rhymes with comedians) could not know the median score at all, let alone what its level was only in 2010.

Radical Mallard added the business about 723 exactly one year ago today, and included misinformation about the FICO score scale and range in the same sentence.  Somebody changed the statement about the low end of the scale (from 350 to 300) on May 29, but even that is questionable (see Valentines Day).

And, that ain’t all of it (see Groundhog Day).

Expert: Utilization factor overstatement a credit score myth

On mint.com, John Ulzheimer blogs, “The debt category is worth 30% of your FICO score points and while the credit card utilization percentage isn’t alone worth all 30% (that’s a myth), it’s certainly key to earning and maintaining great scores.”

The myth to which he refers was documented in 2009 on creditscoring.com with links calling out the offenders.  His comments are part of a growing chorus of voices who set the record straight.

But it faces a gargantuan, ever-sprawling, contradictory, capricious foe.  The silliness has existed on Wikipedia (looks like an encyclopedia; really just a message board) for over 5 years.  Later, in the chain of wacky influence and rumor that swirls around credit scores, the Wikipedians (rhymes with comedians) were emboldened by–none other than–USA TODAY, which states, “The amount of debt you have outstanding, as a percentage of your available credit limit, accounts for 30% of your score.”

On February 4, the newspaper’s reply to a creditscoring.com inquiry for its source was only this URL:

http://www.myfico.com/CreditEducation/WhatsInYourScore.aspx

And so, of course, as anyone can see, USA TODAY’s story is bunk, thus Wikipedia is bunk.

Five years of bunk.

Almost six.

And counting.

Kat Malone, where are you?

Wikipedia states scores under 600 are “poor”

Wikipedia has an article about practically everything credit-related:  annualcrediteport.com, consumer credit risk, credit history, credit rating, credit score, credit score “(United States),” FICO, and on and on.

There is even an article about the number 600.  In it, a Wikipedian contends that 600 or below is a “poor” credit score, but does not identify the score model.

Of course, a 600 FICO score is a relative number; what is poor to one lender might be acceptable to another.  On its shining new website ScoreInfo, FICO credit score company Fair Isaac can’t seem to bring itself to even use the term.  And, while it calls 560 to 659 “Not good,” it says that some lenders will still approve loans at that range.  But, the Wizard takes a hard line in the next lower category.  It calls scores lower than 560 “Bad.”

Wikipedia removes one, but not all references to employers and scores

In the Wikipedia article Credit score, a Wikipedia editor removed the word employers from a typical series describing who uses credit scores:  “mobile phone companies, insurance companies, employers, landlords, and government departments.”

The Wikipedian noted: “It’s a common misconception/myth that potential employers receive credit scores. Their specific version of a credit report does not include a score.”

However, the editor failed to remove the reference to employers later in the same article.

Wikipedia links to Federal Reserve document that claims employers use credit scores

Popular message board pretending to be an encyclopedia Wikipedia added a link to a source using an unattributed claim this week.

In its article Credit score, Wikipedia listed the paper, “Your Credit Score Is a Ranking, Not a Score,” an item in the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland publication “Economic Commentary.” 

The first sentence of the November 16 paper states that credit scores are used in hiring decisions.  However, the consumer reporting agencies all state that they do not provide scores for employment purposes.  John Ulzheimer of SmartCredit.com calls it the myth of the decade.

To drive home the notion, the Federal Reserve even created a video containing a depiction of a job application.  The paper’s author, a Federal Reserve spokesperson and the chairman have not responded to a request for evidence supporting the claim.  The central bank did not mention creditscoring.com again. 

The Wikipedia user who added the link has also contributed to the articles Bubble Tea, Play-Doh and The Ambiguously Gay Duo.  Last week, creditscoring.com published “Groundhog Day, 2011 – Wikipedia on credit scores.”