The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, act as legal, financial or credit advice; instead, it is for general informational purposes only. Information on this website may not be current. This website may contain links to other third-party websites. Such links are only for the convenience of the reader, user or browser; we do not recommend or endorse the contents of any third-party sites. Readers of this website should contact their attorney, accountant or credit counselor to obtain advice with respect to their particular situation. No reader, user, or browser of this site should act or not act on the basis of information on this site. Always seek personal legal, financial or credit advice for your relevant jurisdiction. Only your individual attorney or advisor can provide assurances that the information contained herein – and your interpretation of it – is applicable or appropriate to your particular situation. Use of, and access to, this website or any of the links or resources contained within the site do not create an attorney-client or fiduciary relationship between the reader, user, or browser and website owner, authors, contributors, contributing firms, or their respective employers.
Credit.com receives compensation for the financial products and services advertised on this site if our users apply for and sign up for any of them. Compensation is not a factor in the substantive evaluation of any product.
Hackers steal more than 1 million records globally every hour. And improvements in technology make it easier—not harder—all the time for cyber thieves to access your personal and financial information. While identity theft is a scary thought, you aren’t helpless.
ExtraCredit provides tools to help you not feel helpless. Sign up for dark web monitoring and $1 million identity theft insurance for proactive alerts and support if the worst happens.
The three major credit bureaus—Experian, Equifax and Transunion—offer three ways to help you protect yourself from someone opening an account in your name—a fraud alert, credit freeze and a credit lock. Though they sound the same, each one provides a different level of protection and impact and each has different requirements.
A fraud alert is a basic form of credit protection. It acts as a roadblock that makes it harder for thieves to open an account in your name. If you have a fraud alert in place, a lender or other business isn’t supposed to open an account for you without first taking steps to verify that the account is, in fact, for you and not someone pretending to be you.
Unlike with a credit freeze, your credit file is still accessible to business and lenders. There’s just an added step that must be taken before the lender or another business opens an account in your name.
Because you provide your contact information when you set up the alert, inquiring banks often use your telephone number to contact you if someone, including you, is trying to open a new account in your name. This gives you the opportunity to confirm or deny that you applied for the account.
There are three different types of fraud alerts that you can add to your credit reports at the three credit bureaus.
While a fraud alert instructs businesses to take steps to verify your identity before opening a new account, it doesn’t keep them from looking at your credit file. A credit lock or credit freeze, also called a security freeze, does prevent anyone from looking at—or making a hard inquiry on—your credit report.
A lock or freeze prevents a business or lender from even considering you for a loan or account, where an alert lets them see your credit report. With an alert, they can get to the point of wanting to extend you the loan or account, but not actually opening it without first verifying you’re the one who wants the loan or account.
With a freeze or lock in place, the lender can still make a soft inquiry against your credit report. So you can still get pre-approved credit card offers or have a prospective employer check your credit.
Initial fraud alerts and credit freezes are covered by government laws, specifically the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act, which requires they be free for one year.
Credit locks are not necessarily free or covered by laws. They are credit industry products.
Locks and freezes last until you lift them. Ending a freeze requires a PIN you receive when you place the freeze. Ending a lock can be done simply by asking the company who placed the lock usually online or by phone.
Requesting a credit card fraud alert is easy and won’t hurt your credit score or affect your reports. It’s okay to request one at any time. Because an alert only lasts a year, you may want to reserve requesting one for when you think you might be in jeopardy, such as:
When in doubt, a fraud alert gives you some reassurance. If you’re planning to take out a loan or apply for a credit card soon, an alert gives you some protection without restricting your ability to apply for financing.
If you have a credit freeze or lock in place and you apply for a loan or credit card, you’ll have to at least temporarily lift the freeze or lock and take extra steps. Those steps aren’t cumbersome but will take a small amount of time. If you choose a lock or freeze, simply know that you’ll have to do some work—more than answering a phone call—if you need a new loan or credit card and have one in place.
Experian lets you submit a fraud alert request online. You can enter either your personal information or identifiers from a recent credit report. If you’d prefer not to input your Social Security number, you have the option to upload other documents to verify your identity.
TransUnion lets you request a fraud alert online through TransUnion by creating an account and completing the online form.
Equifax lets you create an account and file for a fraud alert online. With Equifax, you can also mail in an application or set up an alert by phone at 800-525-6285.
A fraud alert, credit freeze or credit lock are just some of the tools you can use to protect yourself from identity theft. Another tool you can use is your credit score. Using a service, such as Credit.com, to monitor your credit score can alert you to any changes in your score which can indicate something—or someone—has abused your credit.
You can sign up for a free Experian VantageScore credit score or a $1 FICO credit score from Credit.com. Your score includes access to a free credit report card—shown below—that tracks the five key areas that go into your score—payment history, debt usage, credit history, account mix and inquiries. Your score and your report card are updated every two weeks, so you can see any changes and take action if needed, including adding a fraud alert, freeze or lock when needed.
October 19, 2023
Identity Theft and Scams
May 17, 2022
Identity Theft and Scams
May 20, 2021
Identity Theft and Scams