With all the information on the news about the Equifax information hack you leave you asking “Should I freeze my credit?” While you might be searching for something proactive to do, freezing your credit is just one of the things you can actually do to protect yourself.
Freezing your credit can create a major hassle.
So the idea of freezing your credit so that it will stop someone from pretending to be you and opening a credit card or taking an auto loan, it will also stop you from doing the same. To actually freeze your credit you have to contact not one but all three of the major credit reporting companies, without doing all three your credit is not really frozen.
Credit On, Credit Off
Credit freezes are not like a light switch that you can easily turn on and off. You will be charged a fee every time you freeze or unfreeze your credit. Processing times can also be a burden as you once again will need to contact all agencies to unfreeze your credit before you apply for a loan, mortgage or credit card. Other cases where you may need to unfreeze your credit that you may not initially think of credit checks for moving into an apartment or co-op or getting utilities such as gas or cable turned on.
Pandora’s Box
While a credit freeze will prevent someone from taking out a new line of credit, it will not actually stop someone from using the information that is already out there such as credit card numbers.
Built In Protection
The good news is that credit cards already have their own line of defense against questionable transactions. Credit card companies pay attention to where and how you shop and will likely contact you or freeze your card if something seems odd.
Deciding to freeze your credit or not should be something to consider, are you looking to buy a new car, home or get a credit card in the near future? If so you may want to wait to submit the credit freeze. With this information making an informed financial decision should be a bit easier.
