How to Freeze Your Credit Before Identity Theft Happens
A criminal who obtains your Social Security number and other personal information may try to open a credit card or loan in your name. One of the most effective steps you can take before this happens is to freeze your credit.
A credit freeze—also called a security freeze—restricts access to your credit files, making it harder for someone to open a new account using your identity. It is free, does not lower your credit score, and remains active until you lift or remove it.
However, you must freeze your credit separately with Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Freezing one credit file does not automatically protect the other two.
What You Need Before You Begin
Each credit bureau uses its own identity-verification process. Before starting, gather:
- Your Social Security number
- Your birth date
- Your current and recent addresses
- An email address and phone number you control
- Government-issued identification, if requested
- A password manager or another secure way to store account information
Choose an email account you expect to keep and protect it with a strong, unique password and multifactor authentication. Your email may be needed later to recover access or temporarily lift a freeze.
How to Freeze Your Credit at All Three Bureaus
Use the official freeze page for each bureau:
Complete these steps at each bureau:
- Go directly to the official website. Type the address into your browser or use a trusted bookmark. Do not follow a freeze link from an unsolicited email, text message, advertisement, or phone call.
- Create or sign in to your account. Use a different password for each bureau. Enable multifactor authentication when the bureau offers it.
- Select “security freeze.” Be careful not to confuse a free security freeze with a paid credit-monitoring plan or proprietary “credit lock.”
- Complete identity verification. The bureau may ask questions based on your credit history or request supporting identification.
- Confirm that the credit file is frozen. Do not assume the request was completed merely because you created an account.
- Repeat the process at the other two bureaus. Your protection is incomplete until Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion all show an active freeze.
- Store your recovery information securely. Save the website addresses, usernames, recovery methods, and any required account information in a password manager. Do not keep passwords or Social Security numbers in an unprotected note, document, or spreadsheet.
You should not have to pay a company to freeze your credit. Placing, temporarily lifting, and removing a security freeze are free.
What to Do When You Need New Credit
A freeze can also prevent a legitimate lender from accessing your credit report. You may need to temporarily lift it before applying for:
- A mortgage or vehicle loan
- A credit card
- Certain rental properties
- Financing or payment plans
- Some utility or service accounts
- Another service that requires a credit check
Before submitting an application:
- Ask the business which credit bureau it expects to check, if it can tell you.
- Sign in through that bureau’s official website.
- Schedule a temporary thaw for only the necessary period.
- Complete your application.
- Confirm afterward that the freeze is active again.
If the business cannot tell you which bureau it will use, you may need to lift more than one freeze temporarily. A scheduled thaw is usually safer and easier to manage than permanently removing the freeze.
What a Credit Freeze Cannot Prevent
A credit freeze is an important layer of protection, but it does not prevent every type of identity theft. It primarily restricts access to your credit files for new-credit decisions.
A freeze does not prevent:
- Fraudulent charges on an existing credit card
- Theft from an existing bank account
- Takeover of an email, shopping, or financial account
- Tax, employment, medical, or government-benefits identity theft
- Current creditors from managing existing accounts
- Every person or organization legally permitted to access a credit file
Continue reviewing bank and credit-card statements, enable transaction alerts, use unique passwords, and protect important accounts with multifactor authentication.
If identity theft has already occurred, visit IdentityTheft.gov to report it and create a personalized recovery plan.
Credit-Freeze Mistakes to Avoid
Common mistakes include:
- Freezing only one of the three credit files
- Paying someone to place a free security freeze
- Clicking a freeze link in an unexpected message
- Accidentally enrolling in a paid monitoring or credit-lock service
- Leaving credit files thawed indefinitely after an application
- Losing access to the email address or phone used for recovery
- Assuming a freeze protects existing financial accounts
- Giving a caller your password, Social Security number, or one-time verification code
A legitimate employee should never need your account password or one-time authentication code. If someone unexpectedly contacts you about your freeze, end the conversation and contact the bureau through its official website.
Today’s Practical Security Step
Check your freeze status with all three bureaus. If your files are not frozen, complete one bureau today and put the other two on a written checklist.
Remember: the protection is incomplete until all three credit files are frozen.
If you are concerned about the security of the computer, phone, or email account you use to manage sensitive financial accounts, Lofgren IT Consulting provides practical security assistance for homeowners and small businesses throughout Prescott, Prescott Valley, Chino Valley, Paulden, and surrounding Arizona communities.
Contact Lofgren IT Consulting or call 928-814-9744 for friendly, straightforward technology help.
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