Freeze Your Credit

There is one free, reversible action that blocks the most damaging kind of identity theft outright. Almost nobody takes it, mostly because they think it costs something or locks them out of their own life.

Last verified 2026-07-25

What a freeze actually does

A credit freeze — also called a security freeze — restricts access to your credit file. When a lender can't pull your report, they won't approve a new account, which is exactly how new-account identity theft gets stopped.

Since the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act took effect in September 2018, freezing and unfreezing is free at all three nationwide bureaus, in every state. The same law extended initial fraud alerts from 90 days to one year.

You must place it separately at Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — placing one does not place the others. A fraud alert works differently: contact one bureau and it must tell the other two.

Freeze, fraud alert, or 'lock'

A freeze blocks access to your file outright. It's the strongest option, and the trade-off is that you have to lift it — temporarily or permanently — before applying for credit yourself. That takes minutes online.

A fraud alert doesn't block anything. It tells lenders to take reasonable steps to verify your identity before extending credit. It lasts one year, renewable, and seven years if you're a confirmed identity theft victim.

A credit 'lock' is a product the bureaus sell, sometimes bundled with a monthly fee. It's similar in effect but governed by the company's terms rather than by federal law. The free thing that federal law guarantees is the freeze.

What a freeze does not do

A freeze stops new accounts being opened. It does not touch accounts that already exist, so it won't stop fraudulent charges on a card you already hold.

It doesn't affect your credit score, it doesn't stop you using existing cards, and it doesn't prevent you from getting your own free reports.

So it's a specific tool for a specific threat: someone using your identity to borrow money. The defence against fraud on existing accounts is a different mechanism — statements, alerts, and dispute rights.

A freeze is also prevention, not recovery. If accounts have already been opened in your name, IdentityTheft.gov is the FTC's official reporting site: it produces an Identity Theft Report and a personalised recovery plan, and that report is what gives you standing to have fraudulent accounts blocked.