Identity Theft Fraud Alert •

Placing identity theft fraud alert on your credit reports and scores is the first action you need to take if you suspect that your identity had been stolen.

Fraud Alert is a type of warning attached to your credit reports and scores, so that potential lenders are notified they should exercise further caution and take steps to verify your identity (e.g. contact you directly) before granting new credit in your name.

Placing Identity Theft Fraud Alert
Placing fraud alert on ALL of your credit reports is easy – you need to call just one of the 3 major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian or Trans Union). As soon as that bureau processes your fraud alert request it will notify the other two, which then also must place fraud alerts on your credit reports. Generally, a fraud alert will be placed on your credit file with all three major credit bureaus within 48 hours.

Here are the contact details for placing fraud alerts:

Equifax:
1-888-766-0008
https://www.alerts.equifax.com

Experian:
1-888-397-3742
www.experian.com/fraud

Trans Union:
1-800-680-7289
https://fraud.transunion.com/fa/fraudAlert/landingPage.jsp

Types of Identity Theft Fraud Alert
There are 3 different types of fraud alerts:

Initial Fraud Alert – Remains on your credit report for only 90 days. This type of fraud alert is only meant to be used as a preventive first aid action.
After the initial 90 days have passed you’ll need to manually extend the alert for another 90-day period.

Active Duty Alert – Active duty military personnel who are away from their usual duty station can place an active duty alert on their credit report to help minimize the risk of identity theft while they’re deployed.
Active duty alerts are effective for a maximum of one year, and can be manually extended if your deployment lasts longer.

When potential creditors see the alert, they MUST verify your identity before issuing credit on your name. They may try to contact you directly, but if you’re on deployment, that may be impossible. As a result, the law allows deployed active duty personnel to use a personal representative to place or remove a fraud alert in their name.

Extended Fraud Alert – Available ONLY for consumers who’ve already been victimized, and remains on your credit report for 7.5 years. In order to place an extended fraud alert you would need to provide an identity theft report – a copy of the report you’ve filed with a federal, state, or local law enforcement agency.

Identity Theft Fraud Alert Limitations
Placing fraud alert won’t necessarily prevent someone from opening an account in your name. Particular with initial fraud alerts, creditors aren’t required by law to contact you. If you suspect that you are a victim of identity theft, fraud alerts are only a part of protecting your credit. Credit Report Freeze offers much better protection because it completely blocks all access to your credit reports and scores, successfully preventing all creditors from even checking your credit!