Freezing Credit for Minors
Identity theft expert Frank Abagnale recently visited my Rotary Club to educate us on common scams and how to protect our families from financial crimes. One of his tips was to freeze credit for minors. Once stolen/sold on the dark web, a minor's credit is infinitely valuable because it can be used for 18 years before anyone notices.
So I set about to freeze my daughter's credit. Considering how easy it was for me to get my first credit card in college, I was shocked by how difficult it is to freeze credit for a minor. While you can find information about it online, consumers are not able to place a protected consumer freeze via phone or online due to the documentation requirements. It was a whole process that took more than a month to complete. The protection is worth it, so I wanted to share how to do it if you're so inclined!
You'll need to freeze credit with all three of the major credit reporting agencies: Equifax. Experian and TransUnion. And you'll need to gather up the necessary documents - birth certificates, social security numbers, drivers license.
Equifax: https://assets.equifax.com/assets/personal/Minor_Freeze.pdf
Experian: https://www.experian.com/help/minor-request.html
TransUnion: Here's what you'll need to provide:
A written request to place a “protected consumer freeze” on the named individual’s file
AND a copy of one piece of documentation that provides ‘sufficient proof of authority’ that you have authority to act on behalf of the minor or dependent such as a birth certificate.
AND information or copies of documentation confirming your identity AND the identity of the minor/dependent. Information or documentation needs to provide ‘sufficient proof of identification’ that you and the minor/dependent are who you really are, such as a:
Social Security number or a copy of a Social Security card
Certified or official copy of a birth certificate issued by the entity authorized to issue the birth certificate
Copy of a driver’s license, an identification card issued by the motor vehicle administration, or any other government issued identification
Send everything here by standard or certified mail (copies - not original documents):
TransUnion
P.O. Box 380
Woodlyn, PA 19094
If your request is successfully processed, you will get a confirmation letter by mail. Save the letter! It references a code that you will then need when it's time to unfreeze your child's credit. Hopefully I can keep up with mine until then!
