The solution is called a
Simple freeze your credit records. Allow nobody to see them without your explicit permission.
It couldn’t be easier. Do yours this morning.
Simply Google “Experian Security Freeze,” “TransUnion Security Freeze” and “Equifax Security Freeze” and follow the bouncing ball.
Here’s how TransUnion explains it:
THERE ARE TWO WAYS (on TransUnion) TO TEMPORARILY PREVENT LENDERS AND OTHERS FROM ACCESSING YOUR CREDIT: LOCK IT YOURSELF, OR HAVE US FREEZE YOUR ACCOUNT.
What’s the difference?
+ Locking
Locking your account puts you in control with no waiting and no PIN to remember and no fee for this service. Enroll in TrueIdentity free – no credit card required – and you’ll have access to your Transunion credit report, the ability to lock and unlock you credit whenever you want and, free monitoring alerts.
+ Freezing
Freezing your credit will prevent lenders and others including (depending on your state’s law) landlords, employers and others from accessing your TransUnion (or Experian, or Equifax) credit report in response to a new credit application. You will need to take additional steps to unlock your credit when you wish to apply for any type of credit. Freezing your credit frequently involves a fee, as does unfreezing your credit.
How do I decide what to do?
For freezing click here. or paste this into your browser: https://www.transunion.com/credit-freeze/place-credit-freeze2
To enroll in TrueIdentity, click here, or paste this into your browser: https://www.transunion.com/product/trueidentity-free-identity-protection.
I signed up for a Security Freeze with Experian and Equifax. I signed up for TrueIdentity with TransUnion. All of this was free. To repear, I did not pay any money.
Signing up with all three took me about 15 minutes at 1:30 AM. It may take longer if you work when normal people work.
The process is not without its amusements. I found this image on Equifax’s web site.
For more — though you don’t need more — here’s a two-pager which a nice bank called Northern Bank put out:
For the bank’s report, click protecting-identity-your-credit-breach_2017
Thank you two readers, Lucky Marr and Dan Good, for your help on solving this problem and allowing me to finally get to sleep.
Years ago, my son Michael’s identity was stolen. It took months to solve. I don’t want anyone to go through what Michael went through.
Harry Newton, who recommends you drop everything instantly — if not sooner — and put a Security Freeze on your credit records.
Why didn’t these guys tell us about Security Freezes eons ago? They earn fees on selling reports on our creditworthiness to banks and credit card companies. Now I’ve placed a freeze on my credit report, I’ve frozen their income. Why do I not feel guilty?
If you missed my yesterday’s blog on Apple’s new phones and warnings about bitcoin, click here.
Time to sleep. It’s 1:54 AM.
This is not me. I stole the picture on the Internet. You get the idea. I’m exhausted.
It’s not just that you could get ripped off, but it is the fact that someone can get your information and rip off someone else in your name.
Lucky,
ONly if you are making payments on your house. I presume senior citizens have their house paid off. Also, how about showing some faith in your fellow man, OK? You really think there are a lot of evil people out there. You need to have more confidence in human nature. Most folks are good and decent.
You have got to be kidding…what world are you living in…what time warp…this is our world and this is today! I strongly urge you read this article from Bloomberg…
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-13/my-three-years-in-identity-theft-hell
…then follow it up with this information from the FBI…
https://www.fbi.gov/investigate/white-collar-crime/identity-theft
According to the Federal Trade Commission, identity theft complaints nearly doubled between 2010 and 2015.
This is 2017! Identity theft is one of the fastest growing criminal acts today…the Equifax data breach has exposed some 143 million people to identity theft INCLUDING YOU!
What percentage of good decent Americans have to be ripped off and their lives destroyed for you to wake up to reality?
Here is some more good reading for you Buck…published yesterday in Forbes, September 14th…
https://www.forbes.com/sites/lizfrazierpeck/2017/09/14/in-the-wake-of-harvey-irma-and-equifax-three-strategies-criminals-are-using-to-run-scams/#5e32992c5da8
The FTC has an entire page dedicated to current scam alerts… you can check them here… https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/scam-alerts
Yes Buck…there really are a lot of evil people out there!
Harry,
Freezing, and then unfreezing, your credit at the three agencies is a terrible idea. IT will cause your credit score to drop and does nothing to protect you from identity theft.
What’s you opinion on Bitcoin? I sunk a bunch of money into crypto-currency.
When you are a very senior, senior citizen who cares what your credit score is? Freezing your credit at the 2 major credit reporting agencies and making the 3rd one report any requests for credit information is an excellent idea. In this day and age anyone can apply for new credit cards, auto loans, mortgages on your house, etc. and all they need do is request a credit report on you without your knowledge. They only need your ss nbr., d.o.b., your address, etc. That is exactly the information that was farmed from the Equifax hack. Many people have lost everything due to some unscrupulous individual doing just that plus years of mental and financial suffering.