Credit Cards - Where and what you buy could affect your credit

This informative article shares an awareness that credit card purchase patterns could be used as part of the analysis in determining whether someone is a higher credit risk.  

What You Buy, Where You Shop May Affect Your Credit
http://www.walletpop.com/credit/credit-cards/article/what-you-buy-where-you-shop-may-affect/544639

QUOTE: As credit card companies continue to tighten their lending standards on card users, some are using purchasing data -- gleaned from millions of card transactions processed daily -- to weed out who may or may not be good credit risks.

Have you used your credit card at merchants specializing in secondhand clothing, retread tires, bail bond services, massages, casino gambling or betting? Your credit card issuer may be taking note -- and making decisions about your creditworthiness based on your purchasing behavior. The reason: Buying used clothing or retread tires may be an indication of financial distress and a preamble to missed credit card payments or defaults.

The recent credit crunch has placed greater emphasis on using the data to predict who may be a higher credit risk. Credit card issuers have said people living in states hard hit by foreclosures, such as Florida, Nevada and California (referred to as the "sand states") may be considered increased risks by virtue of the fact that they live there. People who shop at the same establishments where subprime borrowers shop also may be considered higher risk.