Credit freeze now free nationwide

Consumers can now freeze their credit for free under a new federal law. A credit freeze restricts access to your credit file, essentially halting anyone from opening any new credit in your name. The rules used to vary by state, but previously it could cost up to $10 to put a freeze in place. That fee often had to be paid again when someone wanted to unfreeze it for any legitimate uses. Consumers who want to freeze their credit should visit the websites of all three credit reporting agencies — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — to make their request at each. The FTC also will have links to those pages on its identity theft information website: www.identitytheft.gov