Americans living around the world have their credit rating to worry about, and the federal government and private industries in the USA has made it simpler over the years for Americans to monitor their credit reports. The AnnualCreditReport.com website is a venture by the biggest credit rating agencies to allow Americans one free report each year.

But for Americans living outside the USA, access to the AnnualCreditReport.com site is often blocked and only available to people residing on American soil. If an American tries visiting the site from overseas, they see an error message like this:

So this free service that keps Americans aware of errors in their credit reports, problems with their finances, and issues with possible financial crimes, is off-limits to Americans living outside the USA!

But there is a solution. A good VPN (virtual private network) allows an American overseas to appear as if they are using a computer in the USA. That way, they can access the AnnualCreditReport.com site with no problems.

Why is AnnualCreditReport.com blocked to people outside the USA? Most likely it is a security issue to thwart phishers and hackers emanating from non-USA IP addresses. Or it could just be a big middle finger from AnnualCreditReport.com to all the American expatriates living abroad.