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Subject: |
Freeze Your Credit |
| Date: |
2009-04-06
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Freeze Your Credit
By John Sileo
www.ThinkLikeaSpy.com
Freezing your credit is the number one way to protect your financial
identity from theft. Had I frozen my credit, neither of my cases of
identity theft would have happened and I wouldn't be an identity theft
speaker today. A woman wouldn't have used my name and credit to buy a
home in Ohio and my business partner wouldn't have used my name to
commit $300,000 worth of crimes that nearly landed me in jail.
A credit freeze is simply an agreement you make with the three main
credit reporting bureaus (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion) that they
won't allow new accounts (credit card, banking, brokerage, loans,
rental agreements, etc.) to be attached to your name/social security
number unless you contact the credit bureau, give them a password and
allow them to unfreeze or thaw your account for a short period of time.
Yes, freezing your credit takes a bit of time (maybe an hour of work),
can be a little inconvenient when you want to set up a new account
(that said, let's face it, businesses want to make it as easy as
possible to unfreeze your credit because they benefit when you set up
new accounts and spend more money) and it can cost a few dollars
(generally about $10 to unfreeze, a small price compared to the
recovery costs of identity theft). And it is worth it! It's like
putting locks on your doors.
There are two ways to freeze your credit. Most states have passed laws
that allow you to freeze your credit. They generally keep the fees and
procedures for filing reasonable. Here is a list of states with credit
freeze laws. http://www.consumersunion.org/campaigns/learn_more/003484indiv.html.
Since all states don't allow you, by law, to freeze your credit, the
three credit reporting bureaus have begun to offer credit freezes on a
national basis. This is a major step forward in the prevention of
identity theft, even if they are offering it for profit reasons (they
make money every time you freeze/unfreeze your credit). If your state
does not currently offer credit freezes by law, you can now apply with
each credit reporting bureau individually. Visit their credit freeze
sites here: Experian, Equifax, TransUnion .
John Sileo is a
two-time victim of data theft. After losing his business to data breach
and his reputation to identity theft, John became America’s leading
identity theft speaker. He uses his gripping story, first-hand
experiences and humorous interaction to inspire audiences around the
world to protect corporate data as if it were their own. His clients
include the Department of Defense, FDIC and Pfizer. Learn more at www.ThinkLikeaSpy.com and www.Sileo.com. Permission granted for use on
DrLaura.com.
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