(a) A consumer may elect to place a security freeze on his or her credit report by making a request in writing by mail to a consumer credit reporting agency. âSecurity freezeâ means a notice placed in a consumerâs credit report, at the request of the consumer, and subject to certain exceptions, that prohibits the consumer credit reporting agency from releasing the consumerâs credit report or any information from it without the express authorization of the consumer. If a security freeze is in place, information from a consumerâs credit report may not be released to a third party without prior express authorization from the consumer. This subdivision does not prevent a consumer credit reporting agency from advising a third party that a security freeze is in effect with respect to the consumerâs credit report. (b) A consumer credit reporting agency shall place a security freeze on a consumerâs credit report no later than three business days after receiving a written request from the consumer. (c) The consumer credit reporting agency shall send a written confirmation of the security freeze to the consumer within 10 business days and shall provide the consumer with a unique personal identification number or password to be used by the consumer when providing authorization for the release of his or her credit for a specific party or period of time. (d) If the consumer wishes to allow his or her credit report to be accessed for a specific party or period of time while a freeze is in place, he or she shall contact the consumer credit reporting agency, request that the freeze be temporarily lifted, and provide the following: (1) Proper identification, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 1785.15. (2) The unique personal identification number or password provided by the credit reporting agency pursuant to subdivision (c). (3) The proper information regarding the third party who is to receive the credit report or the time period for which the report shall be available to users of the credit report. (e) A consumer credit reporting agency that receives a request from a consumer to temporarily lift a freeze on a credit report pursuant to subdivision (d) shall comply with the request no later than three business days after receiving the request. (f) A consumer credit reporting agency may develop procedures involving the use of telephone, fax, the Internet, or other electronic media to receive and process a request from a consumer to temporarily lift a freeze on a credit report pursuant to subdivision (d) in an expedited manner. (g) A consumer credit reporting agency shall remove or temporarily lift a freeze placed on a consumerâs credit report only in the following cases: (1) Upon consumer request, pursuant to subdivision (d) or (j). (2) If the consumerâs credit report was frozen due to a material misrepresentation of fact by the consumer. If a consumer credit reporting agency intends to remove a freeze upon a consumerâs credit report pursuant to this paragraph, the consumer credit reporting agency shall notify the consumer in writing prior to removing the freeze on the consumerâs credit report. (h) A third party who requests access to a consumer credit report in connection with an application for credit or any other use may treat the application as incomplete if a security freeze is in effect and the consumer does not allow his or her credit report to be accessed for that specific party or period of time. (i) If a consumer requests a security freeze, the consumer credit reporting agency shall disclose the process of placing and temporarily lifting a freeze and the process for allowing access to information from the consumerâs credit report for a specific party or period of time while the freeze is in place. (j) A security freeze shall remain in place until the consumer requests that the security freeze be removed. A consumer credit reporting agency shall remove a security freeze within three business days of recei
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