Equifax announced that there has been a data breach of their systems and approximately 143 million American social security #’s. Most of the consumer information accessed 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 consumers and certain dispute documents, which included personal identifying information, for approximately 182,000 consumers were accessed.
I originally though I would be unaffected as I have not requested credit recently. After reading some articles about it, I checked my social security # and found out that I had been on the list of potentially impacted numbers. Immediately, I went back and reread those article with a higher level of attention.
Assuming you too have been potentially impacted by the data breach, I took some key links from the readings to share with friends. Here are the steps I took to ensure the potential impact was minimized and some of the articles related to the breach.
- Check if you have been potentially impacted:
https://www.equifaxsecurity2017.com - Setup initial fraud alert to be warned of any activity with your SS#:
Equifax Initial Fraud Alert - Place a Freeze on your Credit:
Equifax Security Freeze
Transunion Freeze
Experian Freeze - Enroll in a monitoring service:
Credit Karma - Check your credit report for suspicious activity:
AnnualCreditReport.com - If you think you have been the victim of identity theft, report the theft and get a recovery plan
https://www.identitytheft.gov/
Further reading on the Equifax breach and steps you should take ASAP if you have been impacted.
Reddit Equifax Breach Information