It's become common practice for marketers to glean information from social networking sites. Now, like many campus admission boards and future employers, financial lenders are studying your Facebook and Twitter updates "to gauge your creditworthiness." In particular, small, private lenders seem most likely to tune into your tweets to get a better idea of your lifestyle and how likely you are to pay.
As crazy as it sounds, your digital footprint is also based on your tweets. "Chances are slim" that larger lenders bother to keep tabs on you in detail -- but if they do, it could be considered a violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act. To be safe, give lenders, and any non-personal accounts, a different email address from the one attached to your private or social networking accounts.
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