Freezing Your Credit
A credit freeze blocks lenders from checking your credit report, which means a thief can’t open a new credit card, loan or phone account in your name. It’s free, it doesn’t affect your credit score, and you can lift it whenever you need to apply for credit yourself.
- Everyone
- Parents
What a freeze does and doesn’t do
| A freeze does | A freeze doesn’t |
|---|---|
| Stop most new credit accounts from being opened in your name | Affect your credit score |
| Stay in place until you lift it | Stop misuse of your existing cards or bank accounts |
| Cost nothing to place or lift | Stop you from using your current cards |
How to freeze
- Contact all three nationwide credit bureaus, online or by phone: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. A freeze at one doesn’t cover the others.
- Create an account or follow the phone instructions, and verify your identity.
- Save your login or PIN in a safe place (a password manager works well).
Lifting a freeze
When you apply for a loan, credit card, apartment or some jobs, ask which bureau they use and temporarily lift (“thaw”) the freeze there, for a set period or for a specific lender. Online requests usually take effect within minutes.
Fraud alerts
- A fraud alert tells lenders to verify your identity before opening credit. Placing one with any bureau notifies the other two.
- An initial alert lasts one year. Identity theft victims can get an extended alert for seven years.
- A freeze is stronger, but an alert is a good step if you’re not ready to freeze.
Other freezes to consider
- Children: parents can freeze credit for children under 16, which stops thieves from using a child’s clean record.
- Banking and utilities: specialty agencies (such as ChexSystems for bank accounts and NCTUE for phone and utility accounts) also allow freezes.
- Taxes: get an IRS Identity Protection PIN. See Identity Theft.
Check your reports
Get your free credit reports at AnnualCreditReport.com, the official site, and look for accounts and addresses you don’t recognize. Watch out for look-alike sites that try to sell you something.
Tip: After a data breach notice, a freeze protects you far better than the free monitoring companies often offer. Do both if you want, but freeze first.
Standards & references
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