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A credit freeze (also known as a security freeze) allows an individual to control how a consumer reporting agency (also known as a credit bureau such as Equifax, Experian, TransUnion, and Innovis) is able to sell personal financial identity data.[1] The credit freeze locks the data at the consumer reporting agency until the individual gives permission for the release of the data.[2][3][4][5]
Typically, consumer reporting agencies only develop such a feature when prompted to by legislation. In Canada, this has led to TransUnion and Equifax not offering any form of credit freeze (instead directing consumers to their paid identity monitoring services, which have been described as 'ineffective'), until the passage of Quebec's Bill 53, the Credit Assessment Agents Act.[6][7]
Lifting a credit freeze requires a PIN.[8] However, in September 2017, a security vulnerability in this system was identified: the PIN is in many cases guessable, and difficult or impossible to reset.[9] Freezing one's credit will not prevent the credit score from changing. Existing companies with access to one's credit profile can still report positive and negative feedback on a credit profile, meaning if the credit profile is frozen, one's credit can still go up or down.[10]
^Combley, Roz (2011). Cambridge Business English Dictionary. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 191. ISBN 978-052-112250-4. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
^"How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Embrace the Security Freeze — Krebs on Security". krebsonsecurity.com. 8 June 2015. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^Lamberg, Erica; Kim, Paul (6 December 2022). "How to freeze your credit". Business Insider. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^Lukic, David (5 August 2020). "Credit Freeze vs. Lock: What's the Difference?". idstrong.com. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^Singer, Adam (11 October 2022). "My Identity Has Been Stolen! What Do I Do Now?". Forbes. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^Cowley, Jenny (22 February 2019). "Credit freezes are one easy way to protect against identity fraud — but they're not available in Canada". CBC News. Archived from the original on 2019-02-22.
^"Equifax Canada Set to Release Freeze Designator Code in Q4 2022". www.truescreen.com. 1 November 2021. Retrieved 2022-01-11.
^Robertson, Adi (8 September 2017). "Can you join a class action suit if you use Equifax's free identity theft protection?". Theverge.com. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^Lieber, Ron (10 September 2017). "After Equifax Breach, Here's Your Next Worry: Weak PINs". The New York Times. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^"What Is a Credit Freeze? Should I Freeze My Credit?". www.lifelock.com. Retrieved 2021-09-02.
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