Credit Reports Are Not Private

Despite all the potentially sensitive information inside them, business credit reports can be made public by the credit reporting agencies to just about anyone willing to pay for access to the information. By the way, the same is true for personal credit reports, which are available to anyone who can show a "compelling business reason." Surprising? Remember that credit reports aren't from the government, but actually are the product of private businesses. So they aren't subject to the same type of government regulation as, say, driver license numbers. And the credit reporting companies are looking for profits, too. So if you're looking to get credit information on a business, it's likely out there -- for a price.