DailyViews: Editorial

New law chills identity theft

Credit worthiness is more critical than ever these days. With lenders navigating the aftermath of the subprime loan debacle clamping down on requirements for loans for homes, cars and other items, the last thing a consumer needs is a blotch on his or her financial history.

This is especially true with serious credit problems that crop up despite the fact that the consumer had no role in creating them.

More people are finding themselves the victims of malicious acts of identity theft and fraud that require a long, laborious process to clean up. Thieves are getting more sophisticated by the day, making it increasingly difficult for individuals to find safety “boxes” in which they can secure their vital information.

But every Georgian got access to an invaluable privacy protection tool on Tuesday when Gov. Sonny Perdue signed into law House Bill 130, sponsored by Rep. Calvin Hill, R-Woodstock. The legislation gives Georgians a low-cost method to freeze information on their credit and control over when it can be accessed.

The new law requires that an Internet-based method and a toll-free telephone number be established by Aug. 1 so that consumers can act to bar or grant access to their credit history. A consumer can also make the request in a certified letter to one of the credit reporting firms.

Pushed by the consumer advocacy group Georgia Watch, the credit freeze law has several features that give consumers better weapons against identity theft. They include:

• A consumer can prevent access to his or her credit file with the nation’s three major credit reporting agencies, preventing an identity thief from fraudulently opening a new account or line of credit in that consumer’s name.
• The credit reporting agencies will provide a consumer with a unique password or personal identitifcation number for use in freezing and unfreezing credit history. The password cannot be the consumer’s Social Security number.
• A consumer who has a freeze in place can have it “thawed” within 15 minutes of making the request electronically or within three days of a written request, allowing a legitimate inquiry to be made. When done electronically, the consumer can quickly refreeze it, leaving open only a brief window of opportunity that would be difficult for a thief to take advantage of.
• The consumer can at any time remove the security freeze permanently.
• When a consumer freezes, temporarily thaws or unfreezes his or her credit history, the maximum amount the credit reporting firms can charge is $3 for each action.
• Georgians age 65 and older, under the bill, cannot be charged a fee for freezing credit, though there is no mention of an exemption to the fee for thawing or unfreezing their credit information.
• A consumer who has law enforcement documentation that he or she has been a victim of identity theft no more than 90 days before making the freeze request cannot be charged any fees in connection to the freezing, thawing or unfreezing, the legislation states.

While that fee waiver should be extended to all Georgians who can document they have been victims of identity fraud, the overall benefit to consumers from the passage of this law is undeniable.

“I am excited beyond words that we in Georgia now have the best credit freeze law in the United States,” said Clark Howard, a board member of Georgia Watch and a consumer advocate radio personality based in Atlanta. “Now Georgians have the best possible way to shut down identity thieves cold.”

The Albany Herald Editorial Board

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THE ALBANY HERALD Founded by H.M. McIntosh, 1891 126 N. Washington St., P.O. Box 48, Albany, Ga. 31702 Michael J. Gebhart, Publisher Jim Hendricks, Editor Danny Carter, Managing Editor Michael Hill, Circulation Director Tami Abbott, Advertising Director Lynn Ridder, Operations Director Cheryl Frakes, Business Office Manager