is credit report middleware for developers of applications and services that require credit bureau data

Credit report middleware, provided by the MERit Credit Engine, links enterprise applications to the credit bureau web services of Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian.  Your front-end applications have complete control over the user interface, the credit report information to be displayed, and the credit scoring decision process. 

Rather than becoming easier,  back-end issues of connectivity, authentication, authorization, storage, and parsing of credit report data has become more complex. Credit report middleware hides the complexity.

Web-Based Credit Services

The Internet lets credit bureaus provide clients with the benefits of a leased line at a fraction of the cost. Unfortunately, each bureau uses a different approach to security, as well as the formatting of credit report requests and responses.

• Net Connect is the Experian web service. It is a non-browser-based system that requires an intelligent client and support for proprietary security services. Software certification is required.
• The Internet STS Equifax web service requires software developers to implement the Equifax proprietary system to system data layout and an additional layer of security. Equifax web services do not permit transmission of human readable credit reports to custom client software.
• TransUnion web services employ secure client digital certificates and proprietary CPU to CPU data layouts.

The MERit Credit Engine takes care of all this for you.

Credit Report Middleware

As middleware between your enterprise applications and the credit bureaus, the MERit Credit engine lets you insert requests, and retrieve responses with standard SQL statements. Optionally, the credit report data can be formatted as XML, standardized to an even greater degree across the three bureaus.

The MERit Credit Engine centralizes the queuing, communications, parsing, rendering, and storage tasks for you. Your own front-end systems present the user interface.  Unlike other approaches, individual workstations do not need to talk to credit bureau web services directly. Setup and support costs are minimized.