How to Stop People From Looking at Your Credit
Equifax, Experian and TransUnion all make money by letting businesses look at your credit reports. Companies must have a purpose for viewing your records. For example, they do so when you fill out credit applications, apply for utility service or try to get an insurance policy. The credit bureaus also sell data to banks and other lenders that want to mail out preapproved offers to people who meet certain financial qualifications. You can stop most people from looking at your credit without specific permission by freezing it, consumer talk show host Clark Howard advises.
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Instructions
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Choose one of the three national credit bureaus to start the credit freeze process. You must go through the process separately with Equifax, TransUnion and Experian. Otherwise companies can view your records with the bureaus that do not have a freeze in place.
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Select your state of residence on the chosen bureau's credit freeze information web page. States have different laws on credit freeze costs. Usually you must pay a fee of about $10, but some states give you the right to freeze your records for free if you are an identity theft victim. Certain states mandate discounts for senior citizens.
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Write a letter to the credit bureau explaining that you wish to freeze your records. Include your full name, Social Security number, current address, previous addresses over the past the past two years, and a photocopy of your driver's license or another government-issued photo identification card. Attach a check for the fee specified on the website and send your letter through certified mail, Howard advises. The bureau's address will be listed on its credit freeze information page.
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Visit the credit freeze pages on the other two credit bureau websites to obtain their addresses, and send certified freeze requests with copies of your identification and checks for the appropriate fees.
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Store your personal identification numbers when you receive them from the credit bureaus. These numbers are vitally important because you use them to temporarily thaw your records when you apply for credit. Lenders cannot look at your history unless you thaw it. Howard states that thaws sometimes cost up to $10.
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Tips & Warnings
Fraud alerts are a free alternative to credit freezes for identity theft victims. They do not stop people from looking at your credit, but they make it harder for criminals to get unauthorized loans or credit cards using your name. The Federal Trade Commission explains that you only have to call one credit bureau to place an alert and it will tell the others for you. This initial alert lasts for 90 days, and lenders take extra precautions to verify the legitimacy of applications, when they see it. You can extend the alert for seven years by submitting a police report.
Sandra Block, a "USA Today" writer, warns that unfreezing credit can take up to three days. People who do not plan ahead can miss low mortgage rates or special deals while waiting for a thaw to take effect. Thaw credit ahead of time when you are shopping for loans.
