Equifax Inc. announced on September 7, 2017 a cybersecurity incident which occurred earlier in the year. On July 29, it was discovered criminals exploited a US web application to gain access to files of over 143 million US consumers. Based on the company’s investigation, the unauthorized access occurred from mid-May through July 2017. If you want a quick road map on what you should do to protect your family from the Equifax Breach read on.
The information accessed primarily includes names, social security numbers, birth dates, addresses and, in some instances, driver’s license numbers. In addition, credit card numbers for approximately 209,000 US consumers, and certain dispute documents with personal identifying information for approximately 182,000 US consumers were accessed.
All consumers should conduct a quick check to see if they were potentially impacted by the event and sign up for the protection and monitoring, regardless of the result. Although it’s free; for a year….. I fundamentally don’t trust Equifax will do the right thing. They can and will actually make money on this hack by increasing their monitoring services for a fee.
5 Tactics To Prevent Your Identity From Theft:
(Courtesy of Daisy Maxey of The Wall Street Journal ) 
Check Credit Reports
Consumers should check their credit reports with Equifax but also with the other major companies, Experian and TransUnion. The reports are available free annually via annualcreditreport.com. Links are below.
Experian / Trans Union / Equifax
Freeze My Credit?
After checking to see if you, or your family members, were affected, it is worth considering freezing your credit. Credit freezes are one of the most effective ways for consumers to protect themselves against identity theft as well as other credit fraud. Freezing the reports provides you a personalized PIN that allows only you to unfreeze them. While the reports are frozen, it becomes extremely difficult for new accounts to open under your name, as they generally require credit checks. Remember, you’ll need to freeze all THREE reports.
Monitor All Bank Accounts & Credit Card Account Activity :
Frankly, you should be doing this anyway, routinely. It’s one of the reasons I like actually getting the statements still in snail mail. It forces me to put eyeballs on my accounts every month. The Equifax breach makes this more of an imperative rather than a non-essential.
Utilize the Identity Theft Resource Center :
If you suspect you have had your identity stolen check out www.idtheftcenter.org. You may also call the center’s toll-free number (888-400-5530) for counsel on resolving stolen identify-theft challenges. All of the center’s services are free.
Equifax is offering a dedicated call center for consumers who have additional questions: 1-866-447-7559. It is open every day, including weekends, from 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. Eastern time.
Corrections & Amplifications :
Credit reports are available free annually via annualcreditreport.com. An earlier version of this article incorrectly cited the website as creditreport.com. (Sept. 8, 2017)
Life Lock :
It costs a few bucks but LifeLock offers a credit monitoring service that also includes credit freezes. It saves time by aggregating all three credit reporting agencies into Life Locks software which makes it easier for you to stay on top of. It’s a classic time versus money conundrum. We have used LifeLock and found the service to be very solid. Life Lock could be an alternative to the do it yourself deal. Further be careful of the Equifax links as thieves have set up counterfeit sites to look just like Equifax. Thus you could be hurting yourself by going the freebie route.
We know this is a pain, but a few minutes managing your risk is so much easier than days and weeks trying to repair the damage these folks could do. Lastly, don’t just focus on yourself. Your children’s social security #’s may be compromised too. Make sure to include them in whatever monitoring you may be doing.
Sorry to write this article, however fore warned is fore armed…..back to your regularly scheduled programming.
Still have questions? Contact a risk advisor by calling 914-357-8444.
