Changing credit card numbers won't help

Dear Dr. Don,
I'm concerned about identity and credit card theft. If I call my credit card companies every few months and tell them to change my card/account number, will that hurt my credit rating? I like the idea of not having the same card number active for too long so that would-be thieves are less likely to use my account for fraud. But will the continual changing of card numbers hurt my credit rating? (Note, I'm not asking to change card companies, just new account numbers on an existing card plan.)
-- Kim Cautious

Dear Kim,
Your idea about rotating credit card numbers is inventive but it could actually wind up increasing the odds that you find yourself a victim of identity theft or credit card theft. Getting a new credit card number every quarter would mean that you will have credit cards in your mailbox four times a year vs. once every three to four years, and fraud programs that recognize when your spending patterns don't jibe with past purchases aren't going to be effective, because the account won't have a transaction history for comparison.

It's also likely to hurt your credit rating because your credit history will show a series of accounts closed at your request every three months -- unless the series of account numbers is treated as a single account relationship by the credit card provider. For this to happen it would have to be a practice established by the credit card provider in reporting your history to the credit bureaus. It isn't something that you can do on your own.

Monitoring your existing accounts is fairly straightforward with most credit cards. You can view your transactions online and keep an eye out for fraudulent activity. Your liability for fraudulent activity on your existing credit card accounts is a maximum of $50, so monitoring your monthly bill should be reasonable and sufficient to protect you against a problem with your existing accounts. This Federal Trade Commission facts for consumers guide, Credit, ATM and Debit Cards: What to do if They're Lost or Stolen, explains the liability limitations.

I currently have a credit monitoring service on my credit history because I was one of the unfortunate 145,000 people caught in the ChoicePoint debacle. While it does provide some peace of mind, ChoicePoint is only providing the service free for one year. Although I received no formal notification from DSW, I expect that I have an exposure there as well.

A fraud alert on your credit report requests that lenders contact you prior to approving any new credit application. It's a free service and will generate a free credit report as well. Credit bureaus don't recommend that you take this step unless you've already been a victim of fraud, but that's locking the barn door after the horse has been stolen. Sure, a fraud alert will keep you from getting instant approval on a credit application, but that's precisely the point of using it.

If you haven't done so already, use the opt-out feature to stop receiving unsolicited credit card offers in the mail. The toll-free number for all of the national credit bureaus is (888) 5OPTOUT or (888) 567-8688.

The federal government took an important first step when it passed legislation allowing consumers to get a free copy of their credit reports once each year. Rotate through the three credit bureaus by requesting a different report every four months. The Bankrate feature, "Credit reports now free for all," explains how to request the free reports. Bankrate also has a guide to protecting yourself against identity theft.

The Federal government needs to require a higher standard for mandatory disclosure when consumer records are compromised and, like the law in California, make companies liable for lost or stolen records and put additional responsibility on lenders and credit bureaus to validate consumer applications for credit.