Credit Freeze / Security Freeze

As of September 21st, 2018 credit freezes and unfreezes are now free nationwide

A credit freeze (sometimes called a security freeze, credit report freeze or credit lock) makes an individuals credit report inaccessible. They are mostly used by consumers who are the victim of identity theft that want to prevent the thieves from starting new lines of credit in their names. This works because creditors will pull an individuals credit report before approving them for new credit, if they are unable to pull the credit report due to a credit freeze they’ll know something is suspicious and the application will be denied. Freezes also prevent credit scores (such as the FICO score) from being accessed as these are based on an individuals credit report.

When an individual places a freeze on their credit report, they’ll be provided with a PIN or password which needs to be used whenever they want to: unfreeze the report for a specific period of time, allow a specific third party (e.g employer, creditor, insurer, etc) to access the report or remove the freeze entirely. Whenever one of these actions is performed the individual will need to prove their entity along with providing this PIN/password.

Creditors that already have an existing relationship with an individual (e.g a credit card issuer whom the individual has a card with) are still able to access that individuals credit report – but this must not be used to extend new lines of credit.

Adding A Credit Freeze

For a credit freeze to be successful an individual will need to place one on each of their credit reports (every individual has three credit reports, one with each of the three credit bureaus: TransUnion, Equifax & Experian).

TransUnion

• Online at: https://www.transunion.com/credit-freeze
• Via phone: 1-888-909-8872
• By certified mail (consumers should make sure they get a return receipt): TransUnion Fraud Victim Assistance, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA. 92834
• Unfreezing an account: Online or call 1-888-909-8872

Equifax

• Online at:  https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/
• By certified mail (consumers should make sure they get a return receipt): Equifax Security Freeze, P.O. Box 105788 Atlanta GA 30348
• Unfreezing an account: 1-888-298-0045, by mail using the address above or online

Experian

• Online at: https://www.experian.com/freeze/center.html
• By certified mail (consumers should make sure they get a return receipt): Experian Security Freeze, P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TX 75013
• Unfreezing an account: 1-888-397-3742 or online

For consumers wanting to freeze their credit report by mail, you’ll need to send a letter that includes all of the relevant details. We’ve provided a sample letter, which you can access by clicking here. Make sure to include the attachments requested (these can be found at the bottom of the sample letter).

Cost Of Placing/Removing A Credit Freeze

As of September 21st, 2018 credit freezes and unfreezes are now free nationwide.

Credit freezing is regulated by state laws and thus the fees for freezing a credit report vary from state to state. For states with no applicable law (Alabama & Michigan are the only ones remaining) the credit bureaus charge a fee of $10 to freeze the report and $10 to unfreeze it.

By State:

Security Freeze Fee Information Table
State	Requirements	Fee Information
		Add	Lift	Remove
AA, AP and AE addresses (Armed Forces)*	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Alabama	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 65 years or older	Free**	$10.00	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Alaska	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$5.00	$2.00	Free**
Arizona	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$5.00	$5.00	Free**
Arkansas	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 65 years or older	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$5.00	Free**	Free**
California	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 65 years or older	$5.00	$5.00	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Colorado	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	Free** (initial request) $10.00 (subsequent requests after the initial freeze was removed)	$10.00	Free**
Connecticut	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Delaware	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 65 years or older	$5.00	Free	Free**
	Protected Consumer	$5.00	N/A	Free**
	Non-victim	$10.00	Free**	Free**
District of Columbia	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	Free**	Free**
Florida	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 65 years or older	Free** (initial request) $10.00 (subsequent requests after the initial freeze was removed)	$10.00	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Georgia	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 65 years or older	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$3.00	$3.00	Free**
Guam*	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Hawaii	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$5.00	$5.00	Free**
Idaho	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$6.00	$6.00	Free**
Illinois	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 65 years or older	Free**	$10.00	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Indiana	Identity Theft Victim	Free	Free	Free**
	Non-Victim	Free	Free	Free**
Iowa	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$12.00	Free**
Kansas	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$5.00	$5.00	Free**
Kentucky (expires after seven years)	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Louisiana	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 62 years or older	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$8.00	Free**
Maine	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Maryland	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$5.00	$5.00	Free**
	Protected Consumer	$5.00	N/A	Free**
Massa- chusetts	Identity Theft Victim and Victim’s Spouse	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$5.00	$5.00	Free**
Michigan*	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Minnesota	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$5.00	$5.00	Free**
Mississippi	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Missouri	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$5.00	$5.00	Free**
Montana	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$3.00	$3.00	Free**
Nebraska	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Minors (child under the age of 19)	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$3.00	$3.00	Free**
Nevada	Identity Theft Victim or Age 65 years or older	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
New Hampshire	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
New Jersey	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	Free**	$5.00	Free**
New Mexico	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 65 years or older	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	Free	Free	Free**
New York	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Victims of domestic abuse	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	Free** (Initial Request) $5.00 (subsequent requests after the initial freeze was removed)	$5.00	Free**
North Carolina	Identity Theft Victim and Victim’s Spouse	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 62 years or older	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	Free	Free	Free**
North Dakota	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$5.00	$5.00	Free**
Ohio	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$5.00	$5.00	Free**
Oklahoma	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 65 years or older	Free** (initial Request) $10.00 (subsequent requests after initial freeze was removed)	$10.00	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Oregon	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
	Protected Consumer	$10.00	N/A	Free**
Pennsylvania (expires after seven years)	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 65 years or older	Free**	$10.00	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Puerto Rico*	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Rhode Island	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 65 years or older	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
South Carolina	Identity Theft Victim	Free	Free	Free**
	Non-Victim	Free	Free	Free**
South Dakota (expires after seven years)	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Tennessee	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$7.50	Free**	Free**
Texas	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
	Utah	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
Non-Victim		$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Vermont	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$5.00	Free**
Virgin Islands*	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Virginia	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	Free**	Free**
Washington	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Age 65 years or older	Free**	Free	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
West Virginia	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$5.00	$5.00	Free**
Wisconsin	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**
Wyoming	Identity Theft Victim	Free**	Free**	Free**
	Non-Victim	$10.00	$10.00	Free**

F.A.Q’s About Credit Freezes

What’s The Difference Between A Credit Freeze & Fraud Alert?

• A credit freeze stops all access to an individuals credit report. A fraud alert allows creditors to view an individuals credit report once they have established their identity.
• Credit freezes are governed by state laws and prices vary state to state. Fraud alerts are governed by federal laws and are free to replace and remove for victims of identity theft.

Does Putting A Credit Freeze On My Credit Report Hurt My Credit Score?

No, placing a credit freeze (or fraud alert) will not harm your credit score. If you’re the victim of identity theft it’s important to check your credit report for anything suspicious. If something is found, report it to the authorities and the creditor who granted the credit. Once you’ve received a police report, you can dispute the item with the credit bureaus to have it removed (this police report is used as supporting evidence).

Learn how to dispute items shown on your credit report

[RELATED: Which Credit Card Issuers Will Approve an Application with a Frozen Credit Report?]