The nation's three major credit-reporting agencies are now allowing consumers to put a security freeze on their credit report, an option Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon says is an excellent way to prevent identity theft. A security freeze makes a consumer's credit report unavailable to lenders, which means identity thieves would not be able to open new accounts or lines of credit in the consumer's name.
"A credit freeze can go a long way toward making your personal information useless to a thief," Nixon said. "Most identity theft measures are aimed at punishing criminals or helping victims recover. A credit freeze can stop ID theft before it happens."
Most states across the country now have laws that give consumers the right to freeze their credit. Missouri is one of only 11 states without such a law, but credit bureaus Experian, Equifax and TransUnion in the past month have announced they will offer the freeze option to consumers nationwide.
Despite their credit being frozen, consumers will still be able to make legitimate applications for loans, credit cards or insurance when they need it. Each credit bureau charges $10 to freeze a credit report. Instructions for placing a security freeze are available online from each of the credit bureaus.
