Report on Steps and the importance of Freezing your Credit.

Freezing your credit is an important step to protect yourself from identity theft and fraud. Here are some reasons why it’s important:

1. Prevents Unauthorized Access: A credit freeze prohibits consumer credit reporting agencies from disclosing the contents of a credit report to any person requesting the data1. This means that it prevents new accounts from being opened using your information2.
2. Reduces Fraud: Freezing your credit reduces the ability for someone to create a fraudulent credit account in your name1. It can greatly reduce the chances of financial fraud if someone gets a hold of your personal data2.
3. Doesn’t Impact Credit Score: A freeze won’t impact your credit score or affect your ability to use your existing credit accounts1.
4. Free of Cost: It used to cost money to freeze your credit, but it’s now required by law that credit reporting agencies offer credit freezes for free1.
5. Peace of Mind: A credit freeze gives you peace of mind knowing that your credit report is secure1.

However, it’s important to note that a credit freeze isn’t guaranteed to be 100% effective1. You need to contact each credit reporting agency individually to issue a credit freeze and then subsequently to lift the freeze1. Also, you’ll need to plan ahead when opening a new credit account (mortgage, credit card, auto loan, etc.) since you’ll need to request a temporary lift of the credit freeze1.