How To Lock Your Credit?
Identity theft can become no less than a headache to deal with if someone applies for loans, credit cards, and any other sort of credit in your name. Freezing your reports is one way to safeguard your credit, and starting a credit lock on them is another. Locking your credit is one way you can opt for with each of the three major credit bureaus. Prior to locking your credit, it would be great if you understood how to lock your credit and how it would help you. So, let us look into it, shall we?
What Is Meant By Locking Your Credit?
Your credit reports contain vital details regarding your financial accounts, as well as other personal information. A credit lock is a way to restrict who has access to those details. Luckily, all three major credit bureaus offer credit locking, so you can control who can check your reports from your mobile device or laptop. If you lock your report and anyone tries to view your history, they won’t be able to do so.
Are you wondering “whether I can lock my credit for free?” then the answer is yes. You can lock your reports with only one or with all three credit bureaus. Based on what credit bureau’s locking service you use, you might have to pay some fee. TransUnion and Equifax offer this service without charging anything. However, you might have to pay a monthly fee to lock or unlock your credit with Experian as a part of a suite of credit-related services.
How To Lock Credit?
If you wish to lock your credit, you can do so by signing up for a credit-locking service with one or all of the major credit bureaus. Using the service mostly involves downloading an app and creating a one-of-a-kind login to access your account. As soon as your account is set up, you can unlock or lock your credit as you see fit with only a tap of your finger. If you are wondering when you might need or want to freeze credit report, it could make sense if:
- You are generally concerned about being a victim of identity theft
- You do not have any plan to apply for new credit nywhere soon
- One of your bank accounts or credit cards was hacked recently
Moreover, because it is easier to unlock your credit file via the app, you can do so at any given point you want to apply for credit. The credit lock service might also offer you access to ongoing credit monitoring, credit score ranges, and alerts.
Credit Lock VS Credit Freeze
Credit locks and credit freezes are different ways to safeguard your credit information, but they do differ in some significant aspects. Understanding how these ways are parallel can help you decide which one you might want to use.
Why And How To Lock Credit Report
Now that we are aware of how to lock credit one card, how about we look into why we must lock them in the first place? Locking your credit gives a dynamic layer of security to your financial health. Here are some of the thought-provoking reasons you need to consider placing a lock on your reports from all three major bureaus:
Prevent Unauthorized Access
A credit lock serves no less than a gatekeeper, limiting access to your credit report. This makes it a lot more difficult for criminals to get to your sensitive financial information.
Minimize Identity Theft Risk
By locking your credit, you can reduce the risk of identity thieves using your personal details to open new accounts in your name.
Protect Your Information
A credit lock helps to protect your addresses, Social Security number, and any other sensitive, personally identifiable information within your credit report from getting into the wrong hands.
Maintain Credit Score
Unauthorized access to personal reports can result in fraudulent activity that might negatively influence my credit score. So, locking your credit can help prevent this from happening.
Control Who Sees Your Credit
With a credit lock, you will get the liberty to choose who can access your reports. This eventually empowers you to share and manage your financial information with only authorized lenders.
Be Proactive
Taking proactive steps to secure your credit is mandatory in the modern digitalized day and age. A credit lock gives an extra layer of defense against potential threats.
Reclaim Peace Of Mind
Knowing that your credit is locked down can reduce anxiety and stress a lot. You will get peace of mind knowing that your financial information is secured.
Is It A Good Idea To Lock Your Credit?
A credit lock might be a great idea if you are worried about identity theft and are not planning to apply for a new credit in the near future. Otherwise, you will need to keep in mind that you need to unlock your credit reports so that the lenders you are applying to can give them access.
The Bottom Line
A credit lock is a simple safety measure that you can take. It ensures you protect not only your credit reports but also your financial identity. There are also other ways to achieve that, and these ways might be cheaper. So, we suggest you consult experts from reputed credit score monitoring services, such as Gifted Financial Services, regarding whatever is best for you. You will get genuine advice from industry experts so that you can make the right decisions for your financial well-being.