This is a question that many people find themselves asking, especially with so many security breaches exposing millions and millions of Americans' vital information on past year. The simple answer? Yes, as a recent report by the advocacy group Consumers US Public Interest Research Group (USPIRG) found the better chance you have to protect yourself against identity theft is to freeze your credit reports before your identity can be stolen. Before you jump on the phone to call the credit bureaus, there are a handful of things you need to know.
How to protect my identity freeze my credit reports?
As USPIRG report says in its introduction, you are at risk of a data breach (and therefore identity theft) if you pay taxes, have health insurance, go to college, patronize businesses that keep any type of client files, a shop with a credit or debit card or work for the government or any other company. Essentially, existing, you are unfortunately at risk of identity theft - that is the reality in today's world. While there are many steps you can take to help protect your identity, such as shredding documents and mail for personal information before throwing them in the trash or refuse to give your social security number whenever as possible, the truth is that you are almost guaranteed to become a victim of identity theft at some point in your life.
A freeze credit report blocks your credit reports to be shared with all potential new creditors, such as banks or credit card companies, or any company that asks to see, like a cell phone or utility services. Since these creditors and businesses may not see the applicant's credit reports, they will most likely refuse a new attempt has to be open - thus keeping you protected. By placing a credit freeze on your relationship with the three major credit bureaus - Experian, Equifax and TransUnion -. Now you can essentially block the attempts of identity theft before it happens, rather than simply being notified after it happens
You may be familiar with another step you can take to protect your credit reports called a fraud alert and wonder how they are different. When you place an alert on your credit reports, companies are required to verify your identity before issuing new credit in communicating with you. fraud alerts can be placed up to 90 days, after which you will need to renew them if you want. If this is something you are worried, you may lose track, many identity theft protection services allow you to set reminders so you know when 90 days is almost up. While a fraud alert can be helpful if someone has misused your personal information, it does not provide the down-lock airtight on your credit to a credit freeze.
What should I do to freeze my credit reports?
Placing a freeze on your credit reports is a fairly simple process. You will need to contact all three credit bureaus - Equifax, Experian and TransUnion - individually and provide some personal information, including your name, address, date of birth and social security number. The details vary from state to state, so make sure you look for to make sure you have all the necessary information to request a credit freeze in your state of residence. You will also probably need to pay a small fee ranging from $ 5 to $ 10, although there are exceptions in some states for people over 65 as well as identity theft victims who can provide a report police. Once your credit freeze has been processed, each company will send you a PIN or password that you should keep in a safe place, as will be necessary if and when you decide you want to unfreeze your credit reports.
freezes credit report can be placed on the credit records of both minors and adults. Since more and more people under 18 years are increasingly victims of data breaches, it is not a bad idea to consider if you have children you may think or have already become vulnerable. A credit freeze lasts until you choose to lift or, in the case of a gel placed on a minor credit reports until they turn 18.
Then my credit reports be unfrozen?
Yes, you can thaw or "thaw" your credit reports of both permanent and temporary, but keep in mind that this is not an instant process, and in some states, you may have to pay a fee in order to lift the freeze. You will need to take this into consideration if you plan to open a new account so you can be sure your credit reports are able to be shared by the time you apply. Also, do not forget the PIN or password sent to you when you placed the gel -. Without it, thaw your credit reports could take longer than usual
What happens if I request a credit card or a loan with a credit freeze?
If you apply a new account as a loan or credit card, but your credit freeze is still in place, the lender will not be able to access your credit reports. As a result, you'll probably find yourself face down to receive money. Keep in mind, many other types of services use your credit reports to prevent fraud - such as owners and cell phone companies - so you need to be aware of whether a frozen credit will hurt your chances of being approved before starting an application for a new account.
Find what credit bureau your creditor uses to check the candidates' credit records can be useful, especially considering the three offices differ in how they treat the lifting of a credit freeze. Experian and TransUnion will both allow you to grant specific creditors unique access to your credit reports without raising the credit freeze, which is a lot less hassle overall, while Equifax requires you to unfreeze your credit report entirely before creditors can access. In case you (or an identity thief) try to open an account but your credit is frozen, the creditor will be notified that the credit file in question is frozen and unavailable.
You may be contacted by the creditor and asked for the freeze up credit, and if it is a legitimate account you are trying to open, you can go ahead and submit the application do either permanently or temporarily. There is a chance that you might end up simply refuse if you apply without lifting the credit freeze, so it is important to consider at least a week to be sure it was lifted before requesting new credit card or other type of account. In fact, you might want to consider targeting two weeks just to be sure.
Finally, do not forget to restore your credit freeze after you have completed the application and know you will not need to provide access to your credit reports more.
Can I still use a credit report monitoring service?
If you want to use a protection service credit report monitoring or identity theft, you can still do even if you put a freeze on your credit reports; However, you might consider if it is worth the cost. It does not hurt to take advantage of the credit and free identity theft monitoring offered to you in the wake of a data breach. They are, after all, free. However, it is important for consumers to remember that these services can not prevent identity theft or fraud, which was confirmed by the report USPIRG, but rather to warn you after the fact. In addition, with a credit freeze in place, you will not be able to receive updated credit reports because they are not available. However, your peace of mind in this situation just experienced new accounts can not be created, and you will still receive alert to changes in your credit score. It does not hurt to take advantage of aspects of identity theft protection service against identity theft such as Internet monitoring the black market, identity theft specialists in restoration and insurance against identity theft.
Take drastic measures as a credit freeze may seem unnecessary, but it is unfortunately something that experts stress lately as the best methods consumers can use to protect themselves against identity theft and fraud. To learn more about identity theft and how to avoid becoming a victim, you can follow our blog for tips and more information.