Security Freeze

You have the right to place a “security freeze” on your credit report, which will prohibit a consumer reporting agency from releasing information in your credit report without your express authorization. The security freeze is designed to prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in your name without your consent. You should be aware, however, that using a security freeze may delay or prevent the prompt approval of any subsequent request or application you make regarding a new loan, credit, mortgage, government services or payments, rental housing, employment, investment, license, cellular phone, utilities, digital signature, Internet credit card transaction, or other services, including an extension of credit at the point of sale.

When you place a security freeze on your credit report, you will be provided a personal identification number or password to use if you choose to remove the security freeze on your credit report or authorize the release of your credit report for a period of time after the security freeze is in place. To provide that authorization you must contact the national credit bureau and provide the following:

  1. Your personal identification number or password.
  2. Proper identification to verify your identity.
  3. The proper information regarding the period of time for which the credit report shall be available.

The national credit bureau must authorize the release of your credit report for a period of time within 15 minutes or as soon as practical if good cause exists for the delay, and must remove a security freeze no later than three business days after receiving all of the above items by any method that the consumer reporting agency allows.

A security freeze does not stop all access to your credit report. Companies with which you have an existing account, or collection agencies acting on behalf of such companies, may still request information from your credit report for the purposes of reviewing or collecting the account. Reviewing the account includes activities related to account maintenance, monitoring, credit line increases, and account upgrades and enhancements.

You have the right to bring a civil action against anyone, including a national credit bureau that willfully or negligently fails to comply with any requirement of the Arkansas Consumer Report Security Freeze Act.

A national credit bureau has the right to charge you up to $5 to place a security freeze on your credit report, to temporarily lift a security freeze on your credit report, or to remove a security freeze from your credit report. However, you shall not be charged any fee if you are 65 or older or if you are a victim of identity theft and have submitted, in conjunction with the security freeze request, a copy of a valid investigative report or incident report.

How To Request a Security Freeze

A consumer may request that a security freeze be placed on his or her consumer report by doing one of the following:

  1. Sending his or her request in writing by mail to a national credit bureau.
  2. Telephoning his or her request to a national credit bureau and providing over the telephone proper identification or personal identification information required by the national credit bureau.
  3. Electronically forwarding his or her request to a national credit bureau through a secure electronic connection or a secure electronic mail connection if the connection is made available by the national credit bureau.

For detailed instructions on requesting a security freeze please contact the credit reporting agencies directly. Their contact information is as follows:

  • Equifax: P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374; (800) 525-6285; www.equifax.com
  • Experian: P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013; (888) 397-3742; www.experian.com
  • TransUnion Fraud Victim Assistance Division: P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790; (800) 680-7289; www.transunion.com

When it comes to protecting your identity, we’ve got your back, Arkansas.