Credit Score Freeze

Most merchants run a credit check on a customer before extending a large line of credit. The reporting happens without your permission but you can freeze your information from being released without your permission. Withholding information is a tactic to prevent identity theft and is precisely the offering on numerous television commercials. Depending on age and state of residence freezing information is either cheap or free (likewise for removing the freeze). I believe each agency respects the election for one year, so you must renew every year. There are a few easy confirmation questions and social security number is required - they have this information already, they ask to make sure someone else is not accessing your information.

Here are the direct links to the three credit reporting agencies:
https://www.experian.com/freeze/center.html
https://www.freeze.equifax.com/
https://annualcreditreport.transunion.com/fa/securityFreeze/landing