Fact or fiction: What affects your credit score?

What helps or hurts your credit can be downright confusing.

So, Consumer Reports wanted to clear things up with its own credit score quiz. 

First up, unpaid library fines. 

"Overdue library fines will not affect your credit," said Tobie Stanger, money editor for Consumer Reports. "They are reported by municipalities and municipal court records, but they won't go on your credit report." 

Next, unpaid parking or traffic tickets?

"Parking and traffic tickets, like library fines, come from municipal records, and they aren't collected by any of the credit reporting agencies," said Stanger. 

What about opening up several credit cards at the same time? 

"Opening up a lot of credit cards in a short period of time can have a negative impact because it suggests you might be in credit trouble," said Stanger. 

Does frequently checking your credit ding your report? 

"You can check your credit report at any time without it affecting your credit score," said Stanger. 

Consumer Reports says you don't have to pay a credit-monitoring service just to check your score.

Instead, go to a site like annualcreditreport.com to check for free.