What you should know about Equifax data breach?
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE EQUIFAX DATA BREACH. According to Equifax, hackers exploited the security vulnerability in a United Stated based application to gain access to millions of consumers’ personal data and files. The company has not said which vulnerability or application was the source. In fact there not saying much at all.
What to do about Equifax data breach?
Equifax has a website, www.equifaxsecurity2017.com, which provides additional information and resources about the data breach. At this website, you may check if your personal information was exposed as part of the data breach. To do so, you must submit your last name and the last six digits of your Social Security number.
Did Equifax get hacked?
In September 2017, credit reporting giant Equifax came clean: It had been hacked, and the sensitive personal information of 143 million US citizens had been compromised—a number the company later revised up to 147.9 million. Names, birth dates, Social Security numbers, all gone in an unprecedented heist. Can a hacker change my credit report?
What do you need to know about Equifax data breach?
Equifax Data Security Breach: What You Need to Know Equifax, one of the three major credit reporting agencies, reported that hackers had infiltrated its systems and gained access to sensitive information of 143 million consumers. The NYS Department of Financial Services is reviewing the incident and recommends that those who may be breach victims take steps to protect themselves.
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How do I know if I was part of a data breach?
Check to see if you've been affected. Visit the company website and watch your email for additional information on the breach. Oftentimes, the affected company will send emails to consumers that are impacted.
Who did the Equifax breach affect?
147 million peopleIn September of 2017, Equifax announced a data breach that exposed the personal information of 147 million people. The company has agreed to a global settlement with the Federal Trade Commission, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and 50 U.S. states and territories.
How much will each person get from Equifax Settlement?
$20,000 apieceAccording to the settlement terms, Equifax agreed to create a fund to offer clients free credit monitoring, identity theft protection, and cash payouts of up to $20,000 apiece to those impacted by the incident.
Who is eligible for Equifax Settlement?
You are a Settlement Class Member if you are among the approximately 147 million U.S. consumers identified by Equifax whose personal information was impacted by the Equifax Data Breach.
How do I know if I was affected by the Equifax breach?
Equifax has created a website where you can find out if you have been affected by the breach. The website will ask you for the last six digits of your social security number and your last name, and then will tell you if you have been affected. You can also call 1-833-759-2982.
What were the consequences of the Equifax breach?
In its complaint, the FTC alleges that Equifax failed to secure the massive amount of personal information stored on its network, leading to a breach that exposed millions of names and dates of birth, Social Security numbers, physical addresses, and other personal information that could lead to identity theft and fraud ...
How do I know if I get Equifax settlement?
For more details and to check your claim status, visit EquifaxBreachSettlement.com . If you were affected by the Equifax data breach, you can still claim financial reimbursement for costs you incurred, or time you spent dealing with fraud or identity theft, after January 22, 2022. Claims are due by January 22, 2024.
Did anyone get money from Equifax?
After a data breach in 2017 exposed personal data of more than 147 million consumers, including in some cases Social Security and driver's license numbers, credit bureau Equifax agreed to pay hundreds of millions in compensation to help affected consumers.
Has the Equifax settlement been finalized?
According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) the settlement was finalized in January 2022. The settlement administrator has begun sending emails and letters to people who filed a valid claim requesting free credit monitoring services from the settlement.
What's going on with the Equifax settlement?
You filed a claim in the Equifax Data Breach Settlement and chose to receive free, three-bureau (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) credit monitoring from Experian for four years. Implementation of the Settlement was delayed by appeals; however, the Settlement is now effective because appellate courts have affirmed it.
How long does a data breach claim take?
In reality, how long a data breach claim takes simply comes down to the circumstances of the case. Some cases could be resolved in a few months, whereas others may end up being pursued for several years.
How do I file a claim with Equifax?
You can file online at www.equifaxbreachsettlement.com or by mail. If by mail, you can download and print the claim form, fill it out and mail it with any supporting documentation. You also can request a claim form be mailed to you by calling 1-833-759-2982 or emailing them at [email protected].
Did anyone get money from Equifax?
After a data breach in 2017 exposed personal data of more than 147 million consumers, including in some cases Social Security and driver's license numbers, credit bureau Equifax agreed to pay hundreds of millions in compensation to help affected consumers.
Why did the Equifax breach happen?
As determined through postmortem analysis, the breach at Equifax started on May 12, 2017 when Equifax had yet to update its credit dispute website with the new version of Struts. The hackers used the exploit to gain access to internal servers on Equifax' corporate network.
Who is affected by tmobile data breach?
The breach affected 76.6 million people in the United States, according to the company. It exposed highly sensitive data, including customers' first and last names, Social Security numbers and driver's license information.
What is the purpose of Equifax?
Providing U.S. consumers and businesses with a wide range of solutions — from consumer credit monitoring and identity theft prevention to business risk information, commercial identity & fraud solutions, financial marketing and analytical services.
How many Americans were affected by the Equifax breach?
Private records of 147.9 million Americans, along with 15.2 million British citizens and about 19,000 Canadian citizens were compromised in the breach, making it one of the largest cybercrimes related to identity theft. In a settlement with the United States Federal Trade Commission, Equifax offered affected users settlement funds ...
What was the data breach Equifax?
The data breach into Equifax was principally through a third-party software exploit that had been patched, but which Equifax had not updated on their servers. Equifax had been using the open-source Apache Struts as its website framework for systems handling credit disputes from consumers.
How much money did Equifax seek in damages?
In one suit the law firm Geragos & Geragos has indicated they would seek up to $70 billion in damages, which would make it the largest class-action suit in U.S. history.
How many drivers licenses were breached in the Equifax hack?
Equifax also estimated that the number of drivers' licenses breached in the attack to be 10-11 million. Security experts expected that the lucrative private data from the breach would be turned around and sold on black markets and the dark web, though as of May 2021, there has been no sign of any sale of this data.
How many records did Equifax access?
In both October 2017 and March 2018, Equifax reported that an additional 2.5 and 2.4 million American consumer records were accessed, respectively, bringing the total to 147.9 million.
How long did Equifax breach last?
The activities went on for 76 days until July 29, 2017 when Equifax discovered the breach, and subsequently, by July 30, 2017, has shut off the exploit. At least 34 servers in twenty different countries were used at different points during the breach, making tracking the perpetrators difficult.
What did the hackers do with Equifax?
The hackers used the exploit to gain access to internal servers on Equifax' corporate network. Among information first pulled by the hackers included internal credentials for Equifax employees, which allowed the hackers to search the credit monitoring databases under the guise of an authorized user.
How many people were affected by the Equifax breach?
Equifax said Thursday that 143 million people could be affected by a recent data breach in which cybercriminals stole information including names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses, and the numbers of some driver's licenses.
What is Equifax credit?
Equifax is one of three nationwide credit-reporting companies that track and rate the financial history of U.S. consumers. It gets its data -- without you even knowing -- from credit card companies, banks, retailers, and lenders.
How to protect yourself from fraud?
Another way to protect yourself is by immediately placing fraud alerts on your credit reports , according to credit expert John Ulzheimer, who previously worked at FICO and Equifax. This means that a lender must contact you to verify your identity before it issues credit in your name.
What to do if you see unauthorized activity?
If you see any unauthorized activity, immediately report it to your bank and/or credit card company. If you believe you've been a victim of identity theft, you should also contact law enforcement.
Can you extend your credit if you freeze your credit?
A freeze takes your credit report out of circulation. If someone else goes to take out a loan in your name, the lender will not be able to pull your report and therefore cannot extend the credit. If you want to take out a loan yourself, you'll have to contact the reporting agency to temporarily lift the freeze.
How much did Equifax pay for the 2017 breach?
Equifax agreed to a class action settlement on Monday in which they will pay up to $700 million in claims, with up to $425 million set aside ...
How much did Equifax pay in breach settlement?
Equifax to pay $600 million in credit breach settlement. July 22, 201902:46. To see if you have been impacted, start by going to the Equifax data breach settlement website and enter your last name and the last six digits of your Social Security number in the search tool.
How much did Equifax pay for a class action lawsuit?
Equifax agreed to a class action settlement on Monday in which they will pay up to $700 million in claims, with up to $425 million set aside specifically to reimburse the over 50 percent of Americans whose names, addresses, Social Security numbers, birth dates, credit card numbers and even driver's license information were compromised by hackers.
How much did Equifax settle with the government?
The credit reporting agency reached a $700 million settlement with the U.S. government. In 2017, a data breach at Equifax exposed the personal information of millions of customers. Getty Images.
When is the deadline to file a claim in New Jersey?
The deadline to file a claim is January 22, 2020 so don't delay. Ronnie Koenig. Ronnie Koenig is a writer for TODAY.com, covering the food and pop culture beats. She also writes about health and wellness, parenting and relationships for NBC Better and TMRW x TODAY, serves as a senior editor for New Jersey Family, ...
When did Equifax announce the breach?
Sept. 7, 2017 – Equifax publicly announces Security Breach and provided a dedicated website for consumers to see if they were impacted. Tthis website included controversial arbitration language in regards to the victim’s ability to sue Equifax.
What are the long term effects of Equifax breach?
This also raises a number of questions that Equifax will have to address, including questions from the general public, government officials and industry regulators. The effects of this will result in a long-term and financially exhausting investigation into the cyber-security practices of Equifax dating back several years, addressing identity theft issues as a result of the breach , and a long-term trend of a decreasing share price of Equifax’s stock. In addition Equifax will now be in the ”hot-seat” of industry regulators for years to come. This regulator spotlight could grow to also include competitors in the market including Experian and Trans Union and have the regulators review their cyber-security practices to ensure a similar incident does not reoccur.
What is CVE-2017-5638?
In this case, CVE-2017-5638 is a Remote Code Execution (RCE) vulnerability that allows remote threat actors to execute commands to the back-end systems of Equifax’s webservers through online form fields.
When did Equifax become a victim of cyber attacks?
July 29, 2017 – Equifax identified that they were the victim of a Cyber Attack and took necessary actions to immediately stop the intrusion.
When did Equifax apologize?
Sept. 12, 2017 – Equifax CEO apologizes in a USA TODAY op-ed, for the intrusion and vows to make changes in order to defend against cyber-crime.
Why did Elizabeth Warren tear into the company?
Sept. 8, 2017 – Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) tears into the company on social media for trying to push customers to give up their right to sue.
Is Equifax a hot seat?
In addition Equifax will now be in the ”hot-seat” of industry regulators for years to come. This regulator spotlight could grow to also include competitors in the market including Experian and Trans Union and have the regulators review their cyber-security practices to ensure a similar incident does not reoccur.
Overview
The Equifax data breach occurred between May and July 2017 at the American credit bureau Equifax. Private records of 147.9 million Americans along with 15.2 million British citizens and about 19,000 Canadian citizens were compromised in the breach, making it one of the largest cybercrimes related to identity theft. In a settlement with the United States Federal Trade Commission, Equifax offered affected users settlement funds and free credit monitoring.
Data breach
The data breach into Equifax was principally through a third-party software exploit that had been patched, and Equifax failed to update their servers with it. Equifax had been using the open-source Apache Struts as its website framework for systems handling credit disputes from consumers. A key security patch for Apache Struts was released on March 7, 2017 after a security exploit was found and all users of the framework were urged to update immediately. Security experts found …
Disclosure and short-term responses
On September 7, 2017, Equifax disclosed the breach and its scope: affecting over 140 million Americans. VentureBeat called the exposure of data on 140+ million customers "one of the biggest data breaches in history." Equifax shares dropped 13% in early trading the day after the breach was made public. Numerous media outlets advised consumers to request a credit freeze to reduce the impact of the breach.
Litigation
Numerous lawsuits were filed against Equifax in the days after the disclosure of the breach. In one suit the law firm Geragos & Geragos has indicated they would seek up to $70 billion in damages, which would make it the largest class-action suit in U.S. history. Since October 2017, hundreds of consumers have sued Equifax for the data breach, some winning small claims cases in excess of $9,000, including actual damages, future damages, anxiety, monitoring fees and pu…
Perpetrators
The United States Department of Justice announced on February 10, 2020 that they had indicted four members of China's military on nine charges related to the hack, though there has been no additional evidence that China has since used the data from the hack. The Chinese government denied that the four accused had any involvement with the hack.
Criticism
Following the announcement of the May–July 2017 breach, Equifax's actions received widespread criticism. Equifax did not immediately disclose whether PINs and other sensitive information were compromised, nor did it explain the delay between its discovery of the breach in July and its public announcement in early September. Equifax stated that the delay was due to the time needed to determine the scope of the intrusion and the large amount of personal data involved.
See also
• Chinese cyberwarfare