An extended fraud alert lasts seven years from the day a credit bureau places it on your file. Throughout those seven years, any business that pulls your credit report must contact you personally, using a phone number or other method you designate, before it can open a new account, issue an additional card, or raise a credit limit in your name.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681c-1 – Identity Theft Prevention; Fraud Alerts and Active Duty Alerts Placing the alert is free, and you can end it early or renew it once it expires.
The seven-year term is what separates the extended alert from the one-year initial fraud alert. You qualify for the extended version only if you are a confirmed identity theft victim with an identity theft report, meaning an FTC Identity Theft Affidavit filed at IdentityTheft.gov or a police report.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681c-1 – Identity Theft Prevention; Fraud Alerts and Active Duty Alerts
What the Seven Years Actually Do for You
Creditors Have to Reach You Before Approving Credit
When you file the alert, you designate the phone number where you want to be contacted. For the next seven years, a business that receives your credit report is legally prohibited from opening a new account or extending additional credit in your name without first contacting you at that number to confirm the application is really yours.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681c-1 – Identity Theft Prevention; Fraud Alerts and Active Duty Alerts Even a thief with your Social Security number and full personal details cannot walk away with new credit while this verification step stands between them and approval.
Keep that designated number current. If you change phones during the seven years, update the contact information with each bureau. An outdated number is how legitimate applications get delayed and how fraudulent ones sometimes slip past.
Five Years Off Prescreened Offer Lists
Placing an extended fraud alert also takes you off prescreened credit and insurance offer lists for five years.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681c-1 – Identity Theft Prevention; Fraud Alerts and Active Duty Alerts Those are the “you’re pre-approved” mailers. Fewer of them in your mailbox means fewer live credit offers a thief can intercept. Note the gap: the alert runs seven years, but the prescreen removal runs five. If you want to stay off those lists longer, you can opt out separately.
Your Credit Score Is Unaffected
A fraud alert is a notation on your file. It doesn’t touch the data that feeds your credit score, so your score won’t move up or down because of it. What it can do is slow down legitimate applications, because the creditor has to complete the verification call before approving anything.
Two Free Credit Reports
Once the alert is placed, the bureau must inform you that you’re entitled to two free copies of your credit report during the 12-month period that follows.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681c-1 – Identity Theft Prevention; Fraud Alerts and Active Duty Alerts Use them to look for fraudulent accounts, unfamiliar inquiries, and incorrect personal information. These are on top of the free annual report you can already get from each bureau at AnnualCreditReport.com.
Ending the Alert Before Seven Years Are Up
You don’t have to wait out the full term. You can ask to have the extended fraud alert removed at any time. Unlike placement, where contacting one bureau covers all three, removal has to be handled with each bureau individually.2Experian. How to Remove a Fraud Alert from Credit Report Each one will verify your identity first, so a thief can’t cancel your protection. Expect to provide a government-issued photo ID and proof of your current address, such as a utility bill or bank statement.
Renewing the Alert When It Expires
The extended fraud alert does not renew automatically. When the seven years are up, you can put a new one in place for another seven-year term by resubmitting an FTC identity theft report or police report to a credit bureau.3Federal Trade Commission. Credit Freezes and Fraud Alerts If you no longer have the original, you can file a fresh one at IdentityTheft.gov or with your local police department. As with the initial placement, one bureau is enough; it must notify the other two.
How Seven Years Compares to a Security Freeze
An extended fraud alert and a security freeze are separate tools, and duration is one of the main differences. The extended alert expires after seven years. A security freeze stays in place indefinitely until you lift it.3Federal Trade Commission. Credit Freezes and Fraud Alerts
They also work differently. A fraud alert lets creditors see your report but requires them to verify with you before extending credit. A freeze blocks access to your report entirely, so no one, including you, can open new credit until you lift it.3Federal Trade Commission. Credit Freezes and Fraud Alerts Anyone can place a freeze for any reason; the extended alert requires an identity theft report. You can use both at once, keeping the freeze on and lifting it temporarily when you actually need to apply for credit.
If a Creditor Ignores the Alert
A creditor that opens an account in your name without first contacting you as your extended fraud alert requires has violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act. You can sue for willful noncompliance and recover either your actual damages or statutory damages between $100 and $1,000 per violation, plus any punitive damages a court awards, plus attorney’s fees and court costs.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681n – Civil Liability for Willful Noncompliance
If a fraudulent account shows up on your report while the alert is active, dispute it with the credit bureau and directly with the creditor that opened it. File an updated report at IdentityTheft.gov to document the new fraud, and consider filing a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which oversees credit bureau compliance.