Credit monitoring or credit freeze or fraud alert

[always_learning]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jjflyman I'm new here and would like some guidance on what any of you do. DW and I are late 50's now, ER sometime next year. We don't need anymore "credit" , and would like to basically shut our credit off to prevent any ID theft. What should we do? We have zero debt and don't want or need anymore credit. What do you guys do to protect yourself? Can I just "turn off" my credit?

In your case, it sounds like freezing your credit is the correct plan of action.

For others reading this thread, I did want to mention that there is another option. Credit Lock. I don't know much about it, but it looks like you need an app on your phone for each of the 3 credit agencies and you can lock & unlock your credit instantly. This comes in handy for those who apply for store cards. It looks like it's s simple 'on/off' switch in the app that locks and unlocks the credit.

Credit Freeze is apparently superior to Credit Lock, due to the federal backing in case of credit being opened when one's credit is "frozen". Credit Lock has no federal protections, from what I've read. Credit Lock is better than just a Fraud Alert, however.

I have just started reading up on this option, so this post is in no way complete. It's fairly new and I am still learning about it but thought I would pass along the info for those who might want to do something stronger than a Fraud Alert but not a complete freeze.

I have no idea if a lock is available for ChexSystems or Innovis or if a freeze is the only option with them.

[jjflyman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by always_learning In your case, it sounds like freezing your credit is the correct plan of action. For others reading this thread, I did want to mention that there is another option. Credit Lock. I don't know much about it, but it looks like you need an app on your phone for each of the 3 credit agencies and you can lock & unlock your credit instantly. This comes in handy for those who apply for store cards. It looks like it's s simple 'on/off' switch in the app that locks and unlocks the credit. Credit Freeze is apparently superior to Credit Lock, due to the federal backing in case of credit being opened when one's credit is "frozen". Credit Lock has no federal protections, from what I've read. Credit Lock is better than just a Fraud Alert, however. I have just started reading up on this option, so this post is in no way complete. It's fairly new and I am still learning about it but thought I would pass along the info for those who might want to do something stronger than a Fraud Alert but not a complete freeze. I have no idea if a lock is available for ChexSystems or Innovis or if a freeze is the only option with them.

Thanks for the heads up. I will look at "Credit Lock"
In this age of ID theft, I am amazed that there isn't a very simple. easy way to just shut off and on ones credit easily.

[gauss]

So Equifax's free "Locking" of your credit, allows companies to pre-screen your credit file and allow the opening of new credit?

I predict that this is not going to end well and people, in some cases, are not going to get what they think they signed up for.

Once again, if you don't know who is paying for a product being offered--then you likely ARE the product.

I am sure the payments paid to Equifax by those companies seeking access to "locked" credit files will be a nice new revenue stream for Equifax.

-gauss

edit: okay -- maybe this is setup so that the new credit can not be finalized until the app switch is pushed.

Quote:

A credit report lock generally prevents access to your credit reports to open new credit accounts. If you want to apply for credit, you must unlock your credit report to allow a credit check. There are exceptions on who can still access your credit report if it’s locked, much like a security freeze. Those may include: Companies like Equifax Global Consumer Solutions that provide you with access to your credit report or credit score or monitor your credit file Companies you have an existing account or relationship with Federal, state and local government agencies Collection agencies acting on behalf of companies you owe For fraud detection purposes Companies that wish to make pre-approved offers of credit or insurance to you Companies reviewing your application for employment You can contact the three major credit bureaus to find out what options may be available to lock your credit reports.

[jjflyman]

Question:
If a I choose to freeze my credit (at all 3 major credit reports), if I later need to get credit for some reason, would I need to unfreeze at all 3 agencies, or just one. to get the credit approval?

[braumeister]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jjflyman Question: If a I choose to freeze my credit (at all 3 major credit reports), if I later need to get credit for some reason, would I need to unfreeze at all 3 agencies, or just one. to get the credit approval?

Depends on who needs it. Whenever I have been asked to unfreeze for a particular reason (new credit card, etc.) I have just asked them which agency they use. I unfroze at that agency (most of the time it was Experian) for a day or two so they could process it, then it went back to frozen again.

I've heard of some cases where the agent you spoke with didn't know which one they used, so you had to unfreeze all of them, but that hasn't happened to me.

[REWahoo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by braumeister Whenever I have been asked to unfreeze for a particular reason (new credit card, etc.) I have just asked them which agency they use. I unfroze at that agency (most of the time it was Experian) for a day or two so they could process it, then it went back to frozen again.

This is exactly how I did it the only time we had the need to unfreeze our credit.

[Corporateburnout]

Quote:

Originally Posted by braumeister Depends on who needs it. Whenever I have been asked to unfreeze for a particular reason (new credit card, etc.) I have just asked them which agency they use. I unfroze at that agency (most of the time it was Experian) for a day or two so they could process it, then it went back to frozen again. I've heard of some cases where the agent you spoke with didn't know which one they used, so you had to unfreeze all of them, but that hasn't happened to me.

I had to unfreeze mine twice. The first time I had to unfreeze with all three bureaus because the creditor would not specify the bureau they worked with but the second time I only had to do it with Transunion.

[Freedom56]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jjflyman I'm new here and would like some guidance on what any of you do. DW and I are late 50's now, ER sometime next year. We don't need anymore "credit" , and would like to basically shut our credit off to prevent any ID theft. What should we do? We have zero debt and don't want or need anymore credit. What do you guys do to protect yourself? Can I just "turn off" my credit?

This is what we do or don't do:

Credit freeze

Free credit monitoring through AAA

Limit the number of credit cards to 3 and minimize their use when overseas

Never use an ATM/debit card overseas for purchases.

Get free annual credit reports through the free site

Don't use non-bank ATMs

Periodically do a search on my properties with the recorder's office

Periodically check balances on all accounts

Use cash for purchases when possible. You would be surprised how much of a discount you get when you pay cash for goods and services.