Data-breach victims to get credit freezes

It will soon be free for victims of data breaches in Florida to freeze their credit reports.

Gov. Rick Scott signed Florida House Bill 953 into law Wednesday, which spikes the usual $10 fee that credit bureaus charge to have credit reports temporarily locked.

The new law goes into effect July 1 after passing both houses of the Florida Legislature unanimously.

A credit freeze stops loan issuers, credit card companies and others from accessing credit accounts. Credit bureaus usually do not charge a fee to lift credit freezes for data breach victims.

“It just makes sense to help consumers that have been victims,” Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said in early March. Patronis’ office initiated the bill in the Legislature.

The new law follows the Equifax data breach that compromised information on more than 145 million Americans last year. Florida follows four other states that require credit bureaus to freeze reports after a data breach. Several state legislatures, such as those in Florida, Iowa and Washington state, were moved to consider new laws this year.

Congress is also considering bill that would do the same.

Central Florida has been hard hit by credit card breaches in recent years. In addition to the national breaches at Equifax, Home Depot, Target and elsewhere, a hack at University of Central Florida comprised data on about 63,000 current and former students in early 2016.

After the breach, the school offered free credit monitoring services to victims, a common tactic by companies and organizations that experience data breaches.

After it announced it’s data breach in September, credit bureau Equifax said it was allowing victims to freeze their credit for six months. It recently extended that another six months to give consumers until June 30.

karnold@orlandosentinel.com