09/25/2018: Free Credit Freezes Start Sept 21!

A new federal law called the “Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act” takes effect on September 21st, which will allow you to get free credit freezes and year-long fraud alerts. This creates stronger ways for you to protect you and your children’s credit.

Here’s what the new law will do:

According to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, when the new law takes effect Equifax, Experian and TransUnion must each provide a webpage for consumers to request fraud alerts and credit freezes. The law also provides additional Identity theft protections to minors by allowing free credit freezes for children under 16 years old.

Credit freezes restrict access to your credit file, making it harder for identity thieves to open new accounts in your name. Typically, you will get a PIN to use each time you want to freeze and unfreeze your account to apply for new credit.

A child credit freeze allows you to freeze the credit file of a child under 16 years old until the child is old enough to use credit. Identity thieves often target minors, but the fraud usually isn’t discovered until the affected individual tries to apply for credit for the first time.

The new law also changes the current rules for “fraud alerts,” which are free but only last for 90 days. Starting Sept 21st, fraud alerts will last for one year, but consumers can renew them each year.

Year-long fraud alerts will tell any business that runs your credit that they should check with you before opening a new account. You can renew the alerts when the expire. Identity theft victims can still get an extended fraud alert for seven years.

Additionally, the law requires the three major credit bureaus to offer free electronic credit monitoring services to all active duty military personnel.

Take advantage of the new law with these free and extended services which will ultimately better protect you and your dependents.