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Prevent identity theft: freeze credit reports
7/7/2009
Scott Swan/Eyewitness News
Indianapolis - Preventing identity theft goes beyond the tips you've heard before. Indiana officials are now unveiling free resources to keep you from losing your money and spending weeks untangling the damage.
Shredding documents is a popular and effective way to prevent ID theft. It's one of the fastest growing crimes in Indiana and across the country.
"It really does ruin people's lives," said Carl Brizzi, Marion County prosecutor.
Stealing a person's identity and running up lines of credit is becoming rampant in the economic downturn, according to law enforcement agencies. But now, there's a new ID theft prevention tool just a click away.
The attorney general's website now offers Hoosiers a way to place a free security freeze on your credit scores. The action blocks thieves from getting their hands on your information.
"The way they use that information to make money is they open up another credit card, run it up on the limit and then leave me with the bill," said Greg Zoeller, Indiana attorney general.
Zoeller said he froze his own credit reports.
"Even if people were to steal my identity, they wouldn't be able to access these lines of credit. And, just as easily in less than 18 minutes, I can unfreeze the credit, so I can get a refinance on a mortgage, take out a new credit card. I'm now taking more control over my own use of credit," he said.
Zoeller says when you freeze your credit scores, the only one who can re-open that important information is you.
It takes about 20 minutes to complete the process. The freeze is temporary. You're given a pin number to use when you're ready to unfreeze your credit score. Taking this action does not hurt your credit score.
To visit the attorney general's website, click here.
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