"Enemy nation states build databases of Americans that they then use to get to their targets, for example a network operator at a power grid, or a defense contractor at a missile defense company. "Cyberwar is in large part conducted through data mining and cyber-intelligence," said Avivah Litan, an analyst at Gartner. Credit freezes with Equifax can be done either on its website or through an automated phone line. The credit freeze, however, will not protect you from potentially even more nefarious end users of this treasure trove of information on nearly half of all Americans. Thank you for your continued patience and feedback as we continue to improve this process." "These are helping to further inform our actions, and we are now sharing regular updates on this website. "We are listening to issues consumers have experienced and their suggestions," the company said on a website it created to post updates on the hack and to detail how it is addressing the issue. Not very secure.īut the company says it's learning as it goes along, and working quickly to make changes. And, most interestingly, instead of randomly generated PINs, early PIN codes appeared to be simply the date and time you applied for a PIN. Others said the automated freezing line wasn't working. Equifax customers reported reaching call center employees who didn't know what a "credit freeze" was. Since the announcement of the hack and even up to now there have been problems with the freezes. It can also put a crimp in those spur-of-the-moment store credit offers where you get a percentage off your purchase for signing up on the spot. But it's also somewhat of a hassle - so if you're shopping for a car or house, you'll want to leave the freeze off for a while. The Disadvantagesįreezing your credit is a great way to stop thieves or computer errors from messing up your credit history. To remove the lift, you can go online to the sites listed above, or write to each credit reporting. The FTC has more info on how credit freezes work as well. How do I permanently remove or temporarily lift the freeze. After you thaw the report and are done with the transaction, you call the credit bureau back and put the freeze back on. The whole process takes about 15 minutes. To thaw it, you can call a phone number (Equifax's automated freeze lift line is 1-80) and give them the PIN along with either the date range you wanted the freeze lifted, or the name of the company you'd like to be given access to your report. Your security freeze restricts access to your Equifax credit report for the purposes of extending credit in your name. To learn more about the difference between a security freeze and a credit report lock, click here.This means that any time you or any other entity - legitimate or otherwise - tries to check your credit and open up a new line of credit, you'll need to first "thaw" your credit report. You place a credit freeze on your Equifax credit report. When you want to apply for credit, you can temporarily lift or permanently remove your security freeze. To place, temporarily lift or permanently remove a security freeze on your Experian or TransUnion credit reports, please contact them directly. You place a credit freeze on your Equifax credit report. After we receive the request and verify your identity, you will receive confirmation. Read more about acceptable documents here. If you are requesting to temporarily lift or permanently remove a security freeze via mail, you'll need to provide documents to validate your identity and address. Please download this form for instructions and mailing address. You'll also have the option to receive a one-time PIN by text message or answer questions based on information in your Equifax credit report for identity verification. You'll be required to give certain information to verify your identity. You can check the status of your security freeze through your myEquifax account as well. Online, by creating a myEquifax account. You can place, temporarily lift, or permanently remove a security freeze on your Equifax credit report in several ways. Placing, lifting and removing a security freeze is free.
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