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The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (previously the CFPB) this week issued an interim final rule updating two model disclosures regarding consumer access to free "national security freezes," fulfilling requirements of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act (S. 2155).

These changes, made to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), restricts prospective lenders from obtaining access to a consumer's credit report, which makes it harder for identity thieves to open false accounts.

Specifically, S. 2155 mandates that whenever the FCRA requires a consumer to receive either the Summary of Consumer Rights or the Summary of Consumer Identity Theft Rights, new information regarding the security freeze right must be included. The FCRA requires the bureau to write model forms of both the Summary of Consumer Rights (a summary of rights to obtain and dispute information in consumer reports and to obtain credit scores) and Summary of Consumer Identity Theft Rights (a summary of rights of identity theft victims). Consumer reporting agencies and other entities can then use the bureau's model forms or similar forms.

S. 2155 also extends to one year (from its current 90 days) the minimum time that consumer reporting agencies must include an initial fraud alert in a consumer's file. A fraud alert informs a prospective lender that a consumer may have been a victim of identity theft.

Congress set an effective date of Sept. 21 for the security freeze right, the notice requirement and the change in duration for initial fraud alerts.