Equifax Is Giving You 5 Extra Months to Freeze Your Credit for Free

Remember last year when Equifax had a data breach? The personal information of more than 145 million people was stolen by fraudsters who lurk on the dark web – the stolen data included names, addresses, telephone numbers and social security numbers. To calm the masses, Equifax announced it would offer a no-fee credit freeze until Jan 31. Now, the freeze offer has been prolonged through June 30.

Equifax Prolongs Credit Freezer Offer Through June 30

If you haven’t done so already, you now have until June 30 to freeze your credit for free. That’s an extra 5 months. This acts as protection, as once your credit is frozen no new accounts can be taken out in your name. Once frozen, it can be unfrozen for a short period if you need to get a loan or buy a new car for example. No matter how many times you freeze or unfreeze your account, you will not incur a charge.

However, freezing your credit with Experian alone may not be enough to protect yourself from fraudsters. Your credit is handled not only by Experian but two other major credit bureaus; TransUnion and Experian. To be get full protection,  you’ll need to freeze your credit with all three companies and you may have to pay fees to the other two to do so.

Freezing your credit is really up to you, as there is no way to find out exactly who is a victim of the data breach until it’s too late. But experts say, the best way to protect your credit after years of major breaches is to freeze it.

You probably don’t like the thought of some guy vacationing in the Bahamas with a credit card in your name. Or how about a lady driving a new Audi off the lot charged to your account? There are many scary things hacker use your data for. By freezing your credit now, you can save yourself from a future nightmare.