Is your mailbox constantly filled with refinance and credit card offers? Did you apply for a home loan and then get bombarded with phone calls from telemarketers offering home financing services?

Your credit file may have been sold by the credit bureaus as a "trigger lead".

When you, as a potential borrower, sign a loan application, the lender or broker pulls your credit report, often getting a report that includes information from all three major credit bureaus.

The lender's request for your credit report "triggers" an alert informing the credit bureaus that you are a "hot lead" looking to purchase a home or refinance your loan.

The credit bureaus sell these trigger leads to lenders and brokers, presenting these industry subscribers with a list of candidates who are looking for a loan and meet their ideal criteria for loan products.

Experian, for example, has a monitoring service that lenders and brokers can subscribe to called Prospect Triggers. ?The bureau pulls out all of the consumers that fit a lender's credit criteria from the consumer database and then sells that information to clients of the service.

Clients of Experian’s Prospect Trigger service and can request leads based on specific credit criteria, for instance, consumers who have never claimed bankruptcy or consumers that have at least two open credit cards and an auto loan.

Federal law limits the type of information provided to clients of these trigger lead services, so no specific information for your accounts is delivered, only cumulative information such as the total number of bank cards you have. However, your contact information, such as your name, address and telephone number, is sold to clients.

Many consumers have complained it's a violation of their privacy. Lenders and mortgage brokers also oppose this practice, claiming borrowers are blaming them for the flood of calls and junk mail. In some states, lawmakers are calling for legislation to prohibit or regulate trigger leads.

So what can you do to stop your information from being sold as a trigger lead or for "prescreened" offers?

It's easy. You can call 800-5-OPTOUT (1-888-567-8688) or fill out the opt-out form at https://www.optoutprescreen.com. This will shrink the amount of junk mail and unwanted phone solicitations you receive. If you opt-out online, you can be removed from the credit bureaus marketing lists for 5 years. But be aware. The agencies have up to 5 business days to execute the opt-out and remove you from their database.