When you work in cybersecurity long enough, you start handing out the same advice on repeat. Use MFA. Don’t reuse passwords. Assume breach. Freeze your credit.
And for years, I gave that last one out confidently—to friends, family, clients, anyone who would listen—while quietly not following it myself.
It wasn’t until identity-related fraud personally affected me that the disconnect became impossible to ignore. The thing I knew was one of the most effective protections against financial identity theft was something I had deprioritized because it felt inconvenient, unnecessary, or like a problem for “later.”
That moment was the reminder we all need from time to time: cybersecurity advice isn’t theoretical. It’s preventative, and it matters most before something goes wrong.
While people usually picture firewalls, MFA, password managers, or endpoint protection when they think of “cybersecurity,” one of the most effective preventative controls actually lives with the credit bureaus: a credit freeze.
A credit freeze prevents criminals from opening new credit accounts in your name, even if they already have your Social Security number, address, or other sensitive data. In an era of nonstop data breaches, freezing your credit is less of a “paranoid” move and more of a baseline personal security control.
The best part? It’s free, reversible, and takes about 15 minutes total.
What Is a Credit Freeze?
A credit freeze (also called a security freeze) restricts access to your credit report. When your credit is frozen:
- New credit accounts cannot be opened in your name
- Lenders cannot access your credit file without your permission
- Existing credit cards, loans, and credit score are unaffected
This means that even if your identity is compromised in a breach, an attacker can’t open new accounts unless they also bypass the freeze.
The Three Credit Bureaus You Need to Freeze
You must freeze your credit separately with each bureau. Freezing just one is not enough.
- Equifax
- Experian
- TransUnion
You can also place credit freezes by mail or phone, but online tends to be the easiest way. To freeze your credit online, you will need to make an account with each of the credit bureaus. Placing a credit freeze is free, so be careful to skip any screens or steps asking for payment or trying to sell you additional services that are not required for a credit freeze.
Freeze Your Credit with Equifax
Freeze at: Credit Report Services | Equifax®
- Create or sign in to your Equifax account
- Verify your identity (SSN, DOB, address)
- Select “Freeze your credit”
- Confirm the freeze
Equifax may try to upsell monitoring services — the credit freeze itself is free.
Freeze Your Credit with Experian
Freeze at: Experian
- Log in or create an Experian account
- Navigate to the Security Freeze section
- Complete identity verification
- Turn the freeze ON
Experian is especially aggressive about marketing add-ons and paid services. Scroll carefully and stick to the free freeze option.
Freeze Your Credit with TransUnion
Freeze at: Credit Freeze | Freeze My Credit | TransUnion
- Create or sign in to your TransUnion account
- Verify your identity
- Enable the credit freeze
- Save your confirmation
- Once complete, your credit file is locked.
What Happens After Your Credit Is Frozen?
- Your credit score continues to update normally
- Existing lenders and creditors still function as usual
- You’ll receive confirmation from each bureau
- No one can open new credit accounts without your approval
If you need to apply for credit later (mortgage, car loan, credit card), you can temporarily unfreeze your credit for a specific time window or creditor.
How to Unfreeze or Temporarily Lift a Freeze
All three bureaus allow you to:
- Temporarily lift a freeze (e.g., for 24 hours or 7 days)
- Unfreeze completely
- Re-freeze at any time
This can usually be done instantly online once you’re logged in.
So what now?
You can think of a credit freeze as your financial MFA. Credit freezes make things inconvenient for attackers, yet manageable for you. While you cannot prevent every breach, you can help limit the blast radius. Even if (or when) your SSN is leaked, your address and DOB are known, or your passwords are compromised elsewhere, a credit freeze blocks fraudulent account creation.
For cybersecurity professionals, privacy advocates, and anyone breach-fatigued, this is a high-impact, low-effort control that belongs in every personal security baseline.
If you haven’t frozen your credit yet, assume your data is already out there because statistically, it probably is.
Additional Resources:
How to place or lift a security freeze on your credit report | USAGov
