DENVER -- Some consumer advocates are crying foul over Experian's decision to begin withholding data from Fair Isaac, a company which uses the data to compute FICO credit scores.

"This move comes at a very bad time for consumers," said Emily Peters of credit.com, an online company that helps people rebuild their credit.

An e-mail alert being sent to consumers and to the news media warns that consumers are about to lose the right to know all three of their FICO credit scores.

Beginning Feb. 14, Experian will no longer provide data to Fair Isaac.

“It is no longer a strategic fit for our business,” said Experian spokeswoman, Susan Hensen.

"We all use FICO or Fair Isaac scores," said Jim Spray, of America's Mortgage LLC.

Spray said Experian's decision is bad news for people looking to buy a new car or a new house.

Experian said consumers can find a myriad of credit scores in the marketplace. Experian sells its own scores online.

"They can and in fact they do, but I need to caution consumers that that means nothing to me as a lender," Spray said. "I'm going to use the Fair Isaac score not the Experian score."

"Credit scores are extremely important," Peters said. "Especially in this market right now."

Peters told 7NEWS that if a consumer doesn't have all three FICO credit scores, from Trans Union, Equifax and Experian, they don't have a complete picture of their ability to negotiate.

"You risk not getting the rate that you deserve, or paying too much for a loan product," she said.

Dr. Gordon Von Stroh, the director of MBA Customized Programs at the University of Denver's Daniels College of Business, said consumers should have access to information about their own credit history, both a credit report and credit score.

"The world we live in is one of transparency and full information," Von Stroh said. "We shouldn't hold back on information to individuals or information they should have about themselves."

Von Stroh likened a credit agency holding back financial information to a doctor holding back medical information.

He used cholesterol as an example.

"It's important that a doctor talk to a patient about their 'cholesterol score' so they can work on a diet and on exercise," said Von Stroh.

He said it's important that consumers have access to the information gathered by the credit reporting agencies so they can maintain credit health.