After experiencing identity theft—or to prevent it—ongoing protection is essential. Credit monitoring alerts you to suspicious activity, while credit freezes block unauthorized access to your credit report. Understanding these tools helps you choose appropriate protection for your situation.
What Is Credit Monitoring?
Credit monitoring services watch your credit reports and alert you when changes occur—new accounts opened, inquiries made, address changes, and more. Monitoring detects identity theft; it doesn't prevent it. The value is early warning so you can respond quickly.
Services vary in what they monitor, how quickly they alert you, and what additional features they include.
Types of Credit Monitoring
Single bureau monitoring watches one credit bureau and is less expensive but may miss activity reported only to other bureaus. Three-bureau monitoring watches all three bureaus (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion) for comprehensive coverage.
Creditors don't report to all bureaus equally—three-bureau monitoring catches more activity.
Free vs. Paid Monitoring
Free monitoring is available through many sources. Credit Karma, Credit Sesame, and similar services offer free basic monitoring. Many credit cards now include free credit score and monitoring features. Data breach settlements often include free monitoring for affected consumers.
Paid services offer more features—faster alerts, identity theft insurance, resolution assistance, dark web monitoring. Evaluate whether premium features justify the cost for your situation.
What Is a Credit Freeze?
A credit freeze (or security freeze) restricts access to your credit report. When a freeze is in place, creditors cannot pull your credit, which means they won't approve new accounts. This blocks identity thieves from opening accounts in your name.
Freezes are free under federal law and don't affect your credit score.
How Freezes Work
You must freeze your credit separately with each bureau—Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Each provides a PIN or password for managing your freeze. Keep these credentials secure—you'll need them to lift freezes.
Freezes remain in place until you lift them. You can lift freezes temporarily when applying for credit, then refreeze afterward.
Freezes vs. Fraud Alerts
Fraud alerts are less restrictive than freezes. They notify creditors to verify your identity before opening accounts but don't block access to your report. Fraud alerts are easier to manage but provide weaker protection.
Initial fraud alerts last one year; extended fraud alerts for identity theft victims last seven years. You only need to contact one bureau to place an alert.
When to Use Each Tool
Credit monitoring makes sense for ongoing awareness of your credit activity. It's useful even without identity theft history.
Credit freezes are best when you don't need to open new accounts frequently and want strong protection. They're particularly valuable after identity theft or data breach notification.
Many people use both—monitoring for awareness plus freezes for prevention.
Managing Freeze Inconvenience
The main drawback of freezes is inconvenience when you legitimately need credit. Plan ahead—lift freezes before applying for credit cards, loans, or apartments. Most bureaus offer temporary lifts for specific creditors or time periods.
Freezes don't affect existing accounts—only new credit applications.
Credit Lock vs. Credit Freeze
Some bureaus offer "credit locks" through their apps. Locks function similarly to freezes but are contractual products rather than legal rights. Freezes have legal protections; locks may have limitations in the terms of service. Generally, freezes are preferable.
Child Credit Freezes
Parents can freeze children's credit files to protect them from child identity theft. Since children shouldn't have credit activity, there's no inconvenience. This prevents thieves from exploiting children's clean Social Security numbers.
After Identity Theft
Identity theft victims should consider placing extended fraud alerts (lasting seven years), implementing credit freezes at all bureaus, using monitoring services to catch residual or recurring theft, and checking credit reports regularly for years afterward.
Getting Started
To freeze your credit, contact each bureau directly: Equifax (equifax.com), Experian (experian.com), and TransUnion (transunion.com). Online freezing is quickest, though phone and mail options exist.