Fraud Alert on Credit Report: What It Is and How Long It Lasts

What a Fraud Alert Adds to a Credit File

A fraud alert is a statement a consumer can add to a credit file held by the nationwide credit reporting companies. It signals to businesses that request the file that the consumer's identifying information may have been used without permission, and it directs them to take reasonable steps to confirm that the person applying for credit is who they claim to be.

The alert exists under the Fair Credit Reporting Act and is free of charge. It does not delete or correct anything in the file, and it does not alter account balances, payment history, or inquiry records. What it changes is the procedure a lender follows before approving a new account.

Because it is a general notice rather than a line-item dispute, an alert can be filed whether or not a specific error or unauthorized account is visible on the report. A consumer who has already disputed an item can add an alert at the same time, and the two processes run on separate tracks.

The Three Types of Fraud Alerts

Federal law recognizes three categories of alert, and the category determines how long the notice stays in the file and what documentation is required to place it.

An initial fraud alert is the standard one-year alert. It can be requested by a consumer who suspects identity theft but has not yet completed a formal report, and it can be renewed when it expires.

An extended fraud alert lasts seven years. It requires an identity theft report, which is typically a report filed with the Federal Trade Commission through IdentityTheft.gov or a report filed with a law enforcement agency.

An active duty alert is available to servicemembers on active duty who are away from their usual duty station. It lasts one year, and the Fair Credit Reporting Act permits a personal representative to request it on the servicemember's behalf.

• Initial fraud alert: one year, renewable, no identity theft report required.
• Extended fraud alert: seven years, identity theft report required.
• Active duty alert: one year, for servicemembers assigned away from their usual duty station.

A Single Request Reaches the Other Nationwide Companies

A consumer does not need to contact every national credit reporting company separately to place an alert. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the company that receives a fraud alert request must notify the other nationwide companies, and those companies must place a corresponding alert in the consumer's file.

That one-call structure is one of the main mechanical differences between an alert and a credit freeze. A freeze generally must be requested at each nationwide company individually, because a freeze is an access restriction specific to each file rather than a shared notice.

Active duty alerts follow the same notification rule, so one request triggers placement at the other nationwide companies as well.

Terminology in this area varies. References to a credit bureau fraud alert or a credit agency fraud alert describe the same statutory notice, just with different wording for the companies that hold the files.

What a Fraud Alert Does Not Do

A fraud alert does not block access to a credit file. A lender that sees the alert can still obtain the report and can still open an account if its identity verification steps are satisfied. The alert changes the process, not the outcome in every case.

An alert does not remove fraudulent accounts, unauthorized inquiries, or inaccurate balances. Those items are addressed through the dispute process under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, which requires a company to investigate a consumer's dispute and report the results.

An alert also does not stop prescreened credit and insurance offers, which are governed by a separate opt-out process managed through the nationwide companies.

Coverage is limited to the nationwide credit reporting companies. Specialty consumer reporting agencies, such as those that compile checking account or employment history, maintain separate files and generally have their own procedures for handling suspected fraud.

Fraud Alert Compared With a Credit Freeze and a Credit Lock

A credit freeze restricts access to a credit file, which means most lenders cannot pull the report at all until the freeze is lifted. A fraud alert leaves the file open and instead prompts verification before new credit is granted.

Federal law makes freezes free to place, lift, and remove for consumers, and a freeze stays in place until the consumer lifts it, whether temporarily or permanently. A fraud alert, by contrast, expires automatically at the end of its term.

Placing a freeze requires a request to each nationwide credit reporting company, while one fraud alert request reaches all of them through the notification requirement.

A credit lock is a different product. Locks are contractual features offered by individual credit reporting companies and are governed by the terms of that company's agreement rather than by the statutory freeze provisions. A separate guide on fraud alert versus credit freeze covers the comparison in more detail.

Placing, Renewing, and Removing an Alert

Fraud alerts are requested by phone, online, or by mail through the nationwide credit reporting companies. The company verifies the consumer's identity before placing the notice, usually by matching information the consumer supplies against the file.

An extended fraud alert requires supporting documentation: an identity theft report and proof of identity, which commonly includes a government-issued identification and a utility bill or similar document showing a current address.

An initial alert expires after one year and can be renewed. Because renewals are not automatic at every company, consumers who want continuous coverage typically track the expiration date and submit a new request.

Removal works differently depending on the alert type. A consumer can ask a company to remove an alert, with identity verification required, and an extended alert may also be removed early at the consumer's request. Reviewing credit reports from the nationwide companies at AnnualCreditReport.com is a common way to check what notices and accounts appear in each file.