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How to Freeze Your Child’s Credit After a Data Breach

A parent or guardian can freeze a child's Equifax, Experian and TransUnion files for free. Here is the paperwork, mailing and IRS PIN checklist.

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November 6, 2026
November 6, 2026

Children rarely check credit reports, which is exactly why thieves like their Social Security numbers. A stolen child SSN can sit unused for years while someone opens cards, loans or utility accounts in that name. DigiCert recently confirmed that a server migration exposed an internal system where an unauthorized account could read archived customer contact details and some identity documents, a reminder that identity paperwork still leaks from ordinary business systems. This guide walks a parent or legal guardian through freezing a child’s credit files at Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, then adding the tax and monitoring steps a freeze alone does not cover.

Federal law makes security freezes free. For a child under 16, each bureau still requires paperwork that proves who you are, who the child is, and that you have authority to act. Gather copies, fill each bureau’s form or letter, and mail or upload them. Do not send original documents.

Before you start

Make photocopies or clear scans of your government issued photo ID, proof of your current address (utility bill, bank or insurance statement), the child’s birth certificate, and the child’s Social Security card.
If your name is not on the birth certificate, also copy a court order, guardianship papers, power of attorney or foster care certification that shows you can act for the child.
Open a folder for confirmation letters, reference numbers and mailing receipts. You will do this 3 times, once per bureau.
If a breach notice named your child, keep that letter too. It helps when you file a report later.

Step 1: Freeze the child’s Equifax file

Equifax handles minors under 16 by mail. Download the official Minor Freeze Request Form from Equifax (PDF). Fill it out, check “Place a freeze,” and include copies of:

For you: one proof of identity (driver’s license or other government issued ID, Social Security card, or birth certificate) and one proof that you are the parent or authorized representative (the child’s birth certificate, a court order, a valid power of attorney, or foster care certification).
For the child: a copy of the child’s Social Security card and a copy of the child’s birth certificate.

Mail the form and copies by U.S. Mail to:

Equifax Information Services LLC P.O. Box 105788 Atlanta, GA 30348

Equifax’s form states that placing, lifting and removing a security freeze is free. Equifax also publishes a child credit freeze FAQ and a general security freeze page if you need to freeze your own adult file too.

What success looks like: Equifax confirms the freeze by mail, and you file that letter with the form copy.

Step 2: Freeze the child’s Experian file

Go to Experian’s Child Identity Theft Services page and choose Add or remove a security freeze for a minor. Fill in your information and the child’s information, then print the form.

Attach copies of:

Your driver’s license or other government issued ID
Proof of your address, such as a bank statement, utility bill or insurance statement
The child’s birth certificate
Proof of guardianship if you are not named on the birth certificate
The child’s Social Security card

Send everything by standard mail to:

Experian PO Box 9554 Allen, TX 75013

For overnight delivery (not to a P.O. Box), Experian lists:

Experian 701 Experian Parkway Allen, TX 75013

Experian also lets you submit the same packet electronically. After you fill out the form, go to experian.com/upload, verify your identity, upload the documents, choose Other as the reason, and describe the minor security freeze. Experian says most responses arrive within 10 to 15 days by email or U.S. mail. Parents of children 13 and under must use mail or upload, because COPPA limits what Experian collects online about young children. A minor who is 14 or older can request their own freeze on that same page.

What success looks like: Experian confirms it placed the freeze, or confirms it has no credit file for the child and still processed the protected request.

Step 3: Place a TransUnion protected consumer freeze

TransUnion calls a child freeze a Protected Consumer Freeze. Parents and guardians can request it for children aged 15 and younger. TransUnion does not offer this freeze by phone or through the regular online freeze tool, because of the document checks.

Mail a written request that says you want a Protected Consumer Freeze on the named child’s file, plus:

Proof of authority (one of): a court order, a valid power of attorney, a current guardianship or conservator document, a government document showing parentage such as a birth certificate, or a foster care certification letter.
Proof of identity for you and for the child (examples TransUnion lists): Social Security number or Social Security card, a certified or official birth certificate, or a driver’s license / state ID / other government issued ID.

Send copies only, by standard or certified mail, to:

TransUnion P.O. Box 380 Woodlyn, PA 19094

Full instructions live on TransUnion’s mail or phone freeze page under “How do I freeze for a minor or incapacitated adult?” Do not use TransUnion’s adult online freeze tool for this.

What success looks like: TransUnion confirms the protected consumer freeze in writing, and you store that letter with the Equifax and Experian confirmations.

Step 4: Know what the freeze does, and what it does not

A security freeze blocks most new creditors from pulling the child’s file to open new credit. It does not:

Erase fraudulent accounts that already exist
Stop tax refund fraud by itself
Stop a thief from using the SSN for other kinds of fraud that never touch a credit check
Freeze your own adult credit file (do that separately with our guide on how to freeze your credit after a data breach)

If a bureau finds that a credit file already exists for your child, treat that as a warning sign. Contact the creditors listed on the report, tell them the consumer is a minor who cannot enter contracts, dispute the entries with the bureau, and start a recovery plan at IdentityTheft.gov. Experian also notes that requesting a freeze when no file exists can cause the bureau to create a file in order to place the freeze. That is expected. The freeze is still the point.

What success looks like: you understand the freeze’s limits and have a plan for tax fraud and any existing accounts.

Step 5: Get an IRS Identity Protection PIN for the child

A credit freeze does not stop someone from filing a federal tax return with the child’s Social Security number. The IRS Identity Protection PIN (IP PIN) is a 6 digit number that helps the IRS stop fraudulent federal tax returns filed with that SSN. A return without the correct IP PIN can be rejected or delayed until the IRS verifies it, though the rules for dependents differ on paper returns, so check the IRS IP PIN FAQ. Parents and guardians can request an IP PIN for dependents.

The IRS says the fastest path is through the IRS app or your IRS online account, in the IP PIN section of the profile page. Important limit: if you or your dependent are under age 18 and want an IP PIN, you must use one of the alternative enrollment options rather than the standard online account flow. Those options are submitting Form 15227 (PDF) if your adjusted gross income is under the IRS limit, after which the IRS calls to verify your identity, or booking an in-person appointment at a local Taxpayer Assistance Center. For a dependent, bring a photo ID plus 1 more ID for yourself, and 2 IDs for the child, such as a birth certificate and Social Security card. After approval, the IRS mails the PIN and issues a new one each year.

What success looks like: you have an IP PIN on file for the child’s SSN before the next tax filing season.

Step 6: Report known identity theft and dispute fake accounts

If you already see accounts, collection notices or a credit report in your child’s name:

Create a recovery plan at IdentityTheft.gov. The site builds a checklist and sample letters for child identity theft.
Call each fraudulent creditor, explain that the account holder is a minor, and ask them to close the account and send written confirmation.
Dispute the fraudulent items with each bureau that shows them. Keep copies of every letter.
File a report at ReportFraud.ftc.gov if you were also hit with scam calls or phishing that followed the breach.

If the child’s SSN was exposed but you do not see fraud yet, still freeze first, then monitor. Our guide on what to do if your Social Security number was exposed covers the adult side of the same problem.

What success looks like: every fake account is closed in writing, disputes are filed, and you have an FTC recovery plan if fraud already happened.

Step 7: Recheck and plan for age 16

Keep the freeze in place until the child is ready to apply for credit. TransUnion says a protected consumer who is 16 or older can mail a request to remove the freeze themselves with proof of identity. Experian similarly says that at age 16 the child can choose to keep or remove the freeze. Before a first student loan, apartment application or credit card, lift the freezes at all 3 bureaus on purpose, then freeze again afterward if needed.

Once a year, or after any new breach notice that names the child, confirm the freezes are still active. IdentityTheft.gov keeps a credit bureau contacts page as a backup directory. Adults can pull free weekly reports at AnnualCreditReport.com. Child files usually stay behind the parent process, so rely on freeze confirmations and bureau mail.

What success looks like: all 3 freeze letters are in one folder, an IP PIN is active for the child, and you have a calendar reminder to revisit the freezes before the first real credit application.

Common mistakes

Freezing only one bureau. Thieves only need the bureau you skipped.
Sending original birth certificates or Social Security cards. Send copies. Keep the originals.
Using the adult online freeze tools for a young child. Equifax and TransUnion minor freezes are mail based. Experian’s child flow is the Child Identity Theft Services form, then mail or upload.
Stopping after the credit freeze. Without an IRS IP PIN, the child’s SSN is easier to use on a fraudulent tax return.
Ignoring an existing child credit file. A file with accounts is evidence of identity theft, not a reason to skip the freeze.
Forgetting your own freeze. If the same breach exposed your SSN, freeze your adult files too.