Equifax®

Equifax® is the oldest of the three major credit bureaus.  Founded in 1899 as the Retail Credit Company, offices sprang up across the country by 1920. By the 1960s, the company was one of the largest of its kind.  The company changed its name to Equifax in 1975.

Equifax is based in Atlanta, Georgia. The company holds credit files on 400 million people worldwide. It has 7,000 employees in 14 countries. The company sells credit reports, demographic data, analytics, software The company promotes products that help people keep an eye on their credit, and offer one free credit report each year through www.annualcreditreport.com.

The company recently switched to a credit score system known as Beacon 09, developed by the Fair Isaac Corporation.