“Who steals my purse steals trash … But he that filches from me my good name, robs me of that which not enriches him, and makes me poor indeed.” Othello
The problem with the above quote is this: identity thieves do enrich themselves at your expense—they steal your purse—and they take your good name as well.
Identity theft is a serious issue. The Bureau of Justice Statistics reports that 23.9 million people over the age of 16 had their identities stolen in 2021, the date of the latest report, with victims losing an average of $1,160 each. If you’re concerned about identity theft, or someone gaining access to your credit report without your permission, place a credit freeze on your report.
I very strongly recommend you place a credit freeze on your report with the three major credit reporting agencies. It’s quick, it’s free, and it’s the single most important thing you can do to prevent identify theft.
Some facts:
- You can lift a credit freeze online with a PIN in one hour.
- A credit freeze may also called a security freeze.
- A credit freeze differs from a credit lock or a fraud alert (use a credit freeze).
- A credit freeze should be in addition to, or instead of, credit monitoring.
- A credit freeze does not affect your credit score.
- A credit freeze also does not:
- Prevent you from getting your free annual credit report.
- Keep you from opening a new account or getting a loan. But to open one, you’ll need to lift the freeze temporarily. It’s free to lift the freeze and free to place it again when you’re done accessing your credit.
- Keep you from applying for a job, renting an apartment, or buying insurance. A credit freeze doesn’t apply to these actions, so you don’t need to lift it.
- Prevent a thief from making charges to your existing accounts. You still need to monitor all bank, credit card and insurance statements for fraudulent transactions.
In 2021, about 1 in 50 U.S. children were victims of identity fraud, and 1 in 45 had personal information exposed in a data breach. I very strongly recommend you place a credit freeze on behalf of your children, including newborns. If you have a social security number, freeze your credit.
A brief note on credit monitoring. I suspect that most adults in the U.S. have received notice from a financial or other institution that the business has suffered a security breach and that personal information may have been exposed. The remedy offered is free credit monitoring. Signing up for free credit monitoring with a reputable third party is a reasonable thing to do. In particular, if someone steals your identity, they should assist you in repairing the damage done to your credit and reputation.
But remember, monitoring is just that: monitoring. It does not prevent identity theft. It informs you it may be occurring. A credit freeze provides substantial protection against identity theft. It’s very difficult for Dr. Evil to open accounts in your name, take loans in your name, and “steal your purse” without a credit check with the big three. Credit monitoring may be in addition to, but not in place of, a credit freeze.
For more information on identity theft, see: https://consumer.ftc.gov/identity-theft-and-online-security/identity-theft
For more information on freezing your credit, see: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0497-credit-freeze-faqs
For more information on protecting your child from identity theft, see: https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-protect-your-child-identity-theft
To freeze your credit at the big three credit bureaus, go to:
- Experian: https://www.experian.com/freeze/center.html
- Equifax: https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/credit-freeze
- TransUnion: https://www.transunion.com/credit-freeze
The credit bureaus may attempt to upsell you on other services. These services are unnecessary and a credit freeze is free.
To opt-out of pre-screen credit offers, which I recommend, go to: https://www.optoutprescreen.com
And you should review your credit report at least annually. You can obtain a free report annually from each of the big three credit bureaus. If you rotate among them, you can receive a free credit report every four months. See: https://www.annualcreditreport.com
As I said in the posts on backup and recovery, “A stitch in time saves nine.” This is a simple action to take. Freeze your credit report and those of your children.
Information provided in this post is subject to the disclaimer in the first post of this series.