NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- After computers were stolen from the Metro election office, voters' Social Security numbers are in the wrong hands.

Video: Credit Freeze Can Prevent Credit Breech

But residents can fight back and get a leg up on the criminals before they strike.

To do that, registered voters might consider a credit freeze, which keeps creditors from obtaining people's credit report and score.

Without it, the creditors most likely will not let someone illegally open an account in someone's valid name.

Currently it seems to be people's safest bet to protect their identity, but it has some drawbacks.

First of all, the cost is not cheap. Consumers have to pay a fee to each of the three credit bureaus to do this.

Their fees vary and once the credit is frozen, even the consumer cannot open a new account unless the freeze is lifted, which the credit bureaus also charge for.

So before the decision is made to freeze credit, there are a few questions that need to be asked:

Do I plan to open a new credit account soon?

Am I willing to pay to have the freeze lifted and re-applied?

Under current Tennessee law, someone would actually have to have misused someone’s information for them to qualify as an identity theft victim.

The fact that someone has stolen a Social Security number does not qualify that person as a victim.

Something else residents might want to keep in mind is that a credit freeze can help keep someone from opening new accounts in their name, but it will not keep them from using accounts they've already opened.

Another option to try and stop identity thieves is a fraud alert, which is free.

Credit agencies will notify the person if anyone tries to open an account in their name.

A credit freeze on the other hand will actually keep a creditor from getting access to your credit information, and potentially keep someone from opening an account in the first place.