A good way to reduce the chances of falling victim to identity theft is to freeze your credit.

What is a credit freeze?

A credit freeze restricts lenders’ access to your credit report information when they are processing a new loan or new credit card application. This stops the lender from approving a new account, making it harder for new credit accounts to be opened in your name.

How do you place a freeze on your credit report?

Credit freezes are free in every state. Contact each of the three credit bureaus to freeze your credit report:

• Equifax
• Experian
• TransUnion

You can make your request by mail, phone or online. Once you submit your request, the credit bureaus will freeze your credit reportand will give you a unique personal identification number (PIN). Keep these unique PINs in a safe, easy to find location because they are required when you decide to lift the freeze from your credit report.

How do you lift a credit freeze?

There is no cost to lift a freeze from your credit report. Simply make a request to each credit bureau individually to have a credit freeze lifted.

While a credit freeze doesn’t protect you from all types of identity theft, it does prevent new accounts from being opened in your name. Freezing your account may add a few extra steps to the new account opening process; however, that extra effort may be worth it in the long run.

What credit freezes do not do

Credit freezes do not:

• Affect your credit score
• Prevent future charges on your existing accounts
• Eliminate pre-screened credit offers

Whether or not you use a credit freeze, you can still get one free credit report from each of the credit bureaus. Visit annualcreditreport.com to view and download a report from each credit bureau — Equifax, TransUnion and Experian.

At the website, complete the request form, select your reports, and verify your information for security.