What is a fraud alert and how do you place one?
A fraud alert is a free flag on your credit file, under FCRA Section 1681c-1, telling lenders to verify your identity before opening new credit in your name. An initial alert lasts one year and renews free; an extended alert lasts 7 years but requires an FTC identity theft report. Place it at one bureau and that bureau must notify the other two. Unlike a freeze, it doesn't block pulls.
What a fraud alert does
With an alert on your file, a lender processing a credit application in your name is required to take reasonable steps to verify the applicant is actually you, typically by calling a phone number you provide. The point is to make stolen personal information harder to convert into new accounts. Alerts are free, placing one requires no proof of loss, and it does not affect your credit score.
The three kinds
- Initial alert: lasts one year, renewable for free, available to anyone who suspects fraud. The right choice after a data breach notice or a suspicious inquiry.
- Extended alert: lasts 7 years and requires an identity theft report from IdentityTheft.gov. Lenders must contact you before extending new credit, and you get additional free reports.
- Active duty alert: for deployed servicemembers, lasts one year and also removes you from prescreened offer lists for two years.
How to place one
Contact any one of the three bureaus (Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion) online or by phone and request the alert. That bureau is legally required to pass the alert to the other two, so one request covers all three files. Keep the confirmation, and calendar the expiration if you intend to renew.
Alert vs. freeze
An alert adds a verification step but reports remain accessible; a freeze blocks access to your file entirely until you thaw it. The freeze is stronger prevention, but it also blocks your own legitimate applications and automated report pulls (including CreditRefresh refreshes) until lifted. An alert does not interfere with monitoring or dispute work at all, which is why many people layer an alert on permanently and reserve freezes for when no applications are planned.
Related articles
A credit freeze blocks most new credit applications by preventing lenders from pulling your credit reports. It's free, federally protected, and the strongest single tool against identity-theft-driven new accounts. A freeze affects bureau pulls — including services like CreditRefresh — so frozen reports need to be temporarily thawed for scans and disputes.
Identity theft happens when someone uses your personal information to open accounts or make purchases in your name. Signs on your report include unfamiliar accounts, hard inquiries you don't recognize, addresses you've never lived at, and collections for debts that aren't yours. Active theft requires filing an FTC report at IdentityTheft.gov, freezing your credit, and disputing fraudulent items.
A credit freeze stops anyone — including CreditRefresh — from pulling your report. If your scan fails or your bureau connection won't complete, a freeze or lock is the most common cause. You'll need to temporarily thaw (lift) the freeze at the affected bureau, run your scan, then re-freeze. Each bureau is frozen separately, so you may need to lift all three.