A credit freeze can help protect your identity and your credit…
With 39 states and the District of Columbia recently enacting laws allowing consumers to freeze their credit and protect themselves from identity theft, consumers are taking advantage of credit report freezes in increasing numbers. An estimated 60,000 consumers have signed up for credit freezes, according to the Consumer Data Industry Association, a trade group that includes the three credit reporting agencies: Experian, TransUnion and Equifax.
A frozen credit report prevents new accounts from being opened because access to your record can only be viewed with your explicit permission. “New account fraud is more serious than people hijacking your current accounts because you can go for a very long time and not realize that there’s an account in your name at a store you never shop in,” says Claudia Bourne-Farrell, a spokeswoman at the Federal Trade Commission.
Identity-theft experts say that credit freezes are often best-suited for people who have little need to apply for new credit, such as children or for elderly parents, or for those who have already paid off their mortgages, car loans and credit cards. Even with a freeze in place, consumers can still order their own credit report and the strategy isn’t foolproof. For instance, it won’t stop someone from stealing your existing credit card number and using it fraudulently. It also won’t prevent existing creditors, certain government, state and local agencies from accessing your credit files.
* To learn more, visit our post about: TransUnion Credit Freezes >>