But fees vary by state (here’s a handy state-by-state chart). They are, in some cases, for victims of ID theft. They merely require that creditors take extra care when they issue new credit in your name, and it’s never been terribly clear what that means. Fraud alerts are temporary, and less effective. Everyone’s situation is different, but freeze are a good idea for many folks - particularly those who have no intention of buying a car, a home, or getting a new credit card any time soon.įreezes should be distinguished from “fraud alerts,” which can also be placed on your credit files. Plenty of folks are recommending freezes as the best response to the hack. It is the most pro-active way to prevent ID theft. For the most part, all these changes have been good for consumers, so I think holding out will benefit you.Ī credit freeze puts a “lock” on your credit report so no one can access it - critically, so no ID thief can open a new credit account using your information. And that website? Just forget all the fine print on it). The firm is making decisions on the fly (pay us for ID theft protection! Wait, don’t! Pay for a freeze! Wait, it’s free now. It’s obvious the firm was abysmally prepared to deal with the consumer response the this incident. That will also let Equifax figure out what the Hell it’s doing. So take a couple of days to let the dust settle. Whoever stole your data has had it since mid-summer, at least - so it doesn’t matter if you freeze today or next week some time. But it’s important to know there’s no mad rush. Ultimately, it’s going to be a good idea to place a security freeze on your credit report. SHOULD I STOP EVERYTHING AND FREEZE MY ACCOUNT? Maybe you’ll ultimately decide a product like LifeLock gives you peace of mind, but there’s no need to sign up right now. L ifeLock says it’s signed up 100,000 new members since the leak, and that’s just silly. Whatever you do, don’t go buy a service you don’t quite understand after this incident. It’s a natural impulse to “do something” after an incident like this, but my recommendation is to hit the pause button for a few more days while journalists and consumers keep trying to badger Equifax into revealing more about the incident. Consumers continue to wrestle with their options in the wake of news that the Equifax credit reporting agency had been hacked, potentially exposing a majority of Americans to identity theft.
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