How a credit freeze works, and how it differs from a fraud alert

A credit freeze is a restriction you place on your credit file that stops the credit bureaus from releasing your report to most new lenders, so an identity thief cannot open an account in your name. It is free at all three nationwide bureaus, it lasts until you lift it, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau states that security freezes "do not impact your credit scores in any way whatsoever."

The catch is that a freeze blocks you the same way it blocks a thief. Until you lift it, your own applications for a card, a car loan, or a mortgage will stall. That trade-off is the whole decision, and it is a manageable one once you know how quickly a freeze comes off.

What does a credit freeze actually do?

Under federal law, a security freeze is "a restriction that prohibits a consumer reporting agency from disclosing the contents of a consumer report that is subject to such security freeze to any person requesting the consumer report," according to the text of 15 U.S.C. 1681c-1 as published by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel. In practice, a lender that cannot pull your report will usually not approve a new account.

The Federal Trade Commission puts the consumer version more bluntly: while a freeze is in place, "nobody can open a new credit account in your name, including you."

A freeze is not a one-time errand with lasting side effects. It does not close anything, it does not appear to lenders as a negative mark, and it does not expire on a schedule. It sits on your file until you take it off.

How fast do the bureaus have to place or lift a freeze?

The deadlines are written into the statute, not left to each company. When you ask by toll-free phone or secure electronic means, the bureau must place the freeze "1 business day after receiving the request." To remove it by the same channels, the deadline is "1 hour after receiving the request for removal." Requests sent by mail run on a three-business-day clock in both directions, per 15 U.S.C. 1681c-1.

Those timing rules arrived with the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act, which the FTC announced took effect on September 21, 2018. The same law made freezes free nationwide and stretched an initial fraud alert from 90 days to one year. Legal requirements can change, so check the agencies' current pages before you rely on a specific deadline.

The one-hour rule is why a freeze is workable for ordinary life. If you are shopping for a loan next Tuesday, you can lift the freeze that morning.

How do you place a freeze at all three bureaus?

There is no single switch. The CFPB is explicit that "you must contact each nationwide credit reporting company separately by visiting their websites" — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Freezing one and forgetting the others leaves a usable file behind.

1. Set aside time for three separate requests, one per bureau, online or by toll-free phone.
2. Verify your identity with each bureau. Expect questions drawn from your own credit history.
3. Save whatever credential each bureau issues you — a PIN, a password, or account login. You will need it to lift the freeze later.
4. Repeat for each adult in your household who has a credit file. A freeze covers one person, not a family.
5. When you apply for credit, ask the lender which bureau it pulls, then lift only that freeze, and only for as long as you need it.

The FTC's guidance on credit freezes and fraud alerts makes the same point about lifting selectively rather than unfreezing everything at once.

What a freeze does not cover

A freeze protects the front door, not the rooms behind it. According to the CFPB, creditors you already do business with can still access your file, and the freeze requirement does not apply to requests tied to employment, tenant screening, or insurance.

So a freeze does nothing about a thief using a card number you already have. That is a dispute with your existing issuer, handled through its fraud process, not through the bureaus.

The CFPB also notes that paid "credit locks" marketed by the bureaus are "no more effective than security freezes, which are free." Paying a monthly fee for the same protection the law gives you at no cost is a common and avoidable expense.

Freeze or fraud alert: which fits your situation?

A fraud alert does not block access. It "tells businesses to check with you before opening a new credit account in your name," per the FTC — a verification step rather than a wall. The trade-off is friction against certainty.

Feature	Credit freeze	Fraud alert
Effect on new lenders	Blocks release of your report	Report still available; business must verify your identity
Cost	Free	Free
How many bureaus you contact	All three, separately	One; it notifies the other two
How long it lasts	Until you lift it	One year for an initial alert; seven years for an extended alert
What it takes to set up an extended version	Not applicable	An FTC identity theft report or a police report

Source for both columns: FTC consumer guidance and the 2018 FTC announcement, as published on ftc.gov. Terms are set by federal law and can change.

Can you freeze a child's credit?

Yes. Federal law creates a "protected consumer" category covering anyone "under the age of 16 years at the time a request for the placement of a security freeze is made," along with incapacitated people who have an appointed guardian, per 15 U.S.C. 1681c-1. The FTC states these freezes are free and that the process differs from the adult one, with instructions posted at each bureau.

Children are attractive targets precisely because nobody checks their file for years. A freeze placed early is quiet insurance.

This article is information, not financial or legal advice. What makes sense depends on your own situation, and the rules described here come from agency guidance and statute current as of the dates cited above.

For a related planning perspective, read How compound interest works in a savings account.