Cheating the System (The FICO system)

The Baltimore Sun ran an article yesterday about an interesting way to cheat the FICO system (the system whereby credit scores are determined). It seems that there are a number of companies that will pair people with high credit scores with those with low scores. The people with high credit scores "rent" their good credit to other for a 6 months or so for a certain fee. In return, those with lower scores get an artificial credit boost. The way it works is those with higher credit scores add those with whom they are paired as "authorized users" of their accounts - the same way parents do with their children to help them establish credit.

HT: Fark Headline "Debtors with poor credit scores can take advantage of a loophole to rent credit lines from people with better credit history. Because spending money in order to borrow more money is exactly what most debtors need to do"