So Many Breaches
Remember those “One Weird Trick” ads that went something like ‘Doctors hate you knowing this one weird trick’, as if doctors were guarding some secret to better health and couldn’t stand the thought of you stumbling onto the easy way of, say, losing 50 pounds? Although it seems most of these internet rabbit holes were aimed at taking advantage of your curiosity - when it comes to hackers and your personal data, I have a tip I’m pretty sure hackers would really hate you knowing.
And best of all, it’s free, easy, and doesn’t involve watching a video of someone rambling on about how this tip could be the most important thing you’ve ever learned.
People tend to think something’s important if it’s a secret, especially if it’s some weird or newly discovered way of doing things. What I want to share with you isn’t a secret, a scheme devised by the illuminati, or even once classified by the US government.. it’s just not that well known.
With breaches exposing more and more of your personal data onto the internet, you must find a way to proactively protect yourself against current and future threats. It’s only a matter of time before some of this data gets turned against you. But how does one go about doing this? Most folks will agree once your personal data makes its way onto the dark web, there’s really nothing you can do to remove it, and you’re out of luck. But isn’t there anything you can do?
Turns out, there is something you can do. And you can do it today. Right now. What I have for you is something that will prevent ANY future credit, loans and services from being opened in your name without your permission. And hackers are hoping you don’t discover it. With so much money at stake, it pains them to think you may one day find out about the untold benefits of .. Wait .. Wait for it.. a Credit Freeze. I know, it doesn’t sound that sexy, earth shattering, or fun, but don’t let the name fool you.
How Does It Work?
Thanks to a consumer protection act passed in 2018, federal law now requires credit bureaus to offer a credit freeze service for free to consumers. Once you’ve successfully set up a freeze with all 3 major credit bureaus (online, should take under an hour), you’re all set! You can immediately get back to worrying about other things. Of course, there are additional security measures you should be considering - like being aware of phishing messages, using unique passwords, setting up multi-factor authentication, etc,. But if you’re looking for that one thing, that one tip that protects you from the fallout of a data breach, you should definitely consider setting up a credit freeze.
Credit freezes are often viewed as the most effective way to prevent financial identity theft. With a freeze in place, you’ll effectively block any entity from offering credit in your name. However this also includes blocking any credit you yourself may wish to obtain - such as obtaining a lease for a car so be sure to plan ahead if you’ll be making major purchases or doing anything that requires a credit check.
And don’t let that part scare you off, some of the myths around credit freezes are that they affect your credit score (they don’t!) or that it’s too hard to unfreeze (takes about 5-10 mins online). Typically you can unfreeze your credit for a day or some other set time, and once that period expires, your credit automatically goes back to being locked. Fast, simple, effective.
What about Minors?
Consumers under the age of 18 typically do not have credit reports. But that also means they’re a fresh target for fraudsters who can apply for credit and take out loans in their name. Consider how easy this is given their personal data could already be breached no thanks to your employer or some other company. Without a credit freeze, a minor in this situation could wind up starting adulthood facing identity theft and a wrecked credit profile - not to mention it’s also not a good look considering all the hype around credit scores these days. Although it takes a little more work to get a credit freeze started online for minors, you should consider setting one up for those in your family.
Know Your Rights
Oh and as you set out to implement your freeze, watch out as some of the credit bureaus offer a paid credit freeze option which usually involves using their mobile app to make managing freezes easier. Depending on how busy you are with purchases, this may not be a bad option - just know by law they must provide you a ‘free’ way to set and unset your credit freeze, and currently that method is by having you log in, and interact with their website.
So there it is.. With all those breaches hitting the news, and so much of our data potentially at risk due to no fault of our own, we deserve knowing at least something that gets us an advantage in this one-sided game. We deserve a free tip, that one weird trick, that unknown but useful piece of information that actually pays off.
Brew Ingredients
● What to know about credit freezes and fraud alerts: https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/what-know-about-credit-freezes-fraud-alerts
● The 3 major credit bureaus to create/manage a freeze:
https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/credit-freeze/