EQUIFAX DATA BREACH WHO WAS AFFECTED INSTALL
EQUIFAX DATA BREACH WHO WAS AFFECTED FREE

'The data might have tremendous value in terms of recruiting spies and other military-type purposes,' he says, adding that 'the FBI would not have a clue if the data were used as such.' That said, Steinberg says the Chinese government is probably not stealing data in order to steal money, and identity theft is probably not its primary reason either.

'If the Chinese use the data a decade from now, few people will even be thinking about the Equifax breach.' In fact, this type of data can become more valuable over time, aging like a fine wine, Steinberg says. That's especially true since much of the information that was stolen in the Equifax breach, including Social Security numbers, does not change with time. The best ways to protect your informationĪlthough none of the stolen Equifax data has been detected yet, that doesn't mean that it will never surface, cyber-security expert Joseph Steinberg tells CNBC Make It. If you're still unsure if your data was part of the Equifax breach, you can enter your name and the last 4 digits of your Social Security number in a search here. The settlement received final approval last month. If you already had credit monitoring in place, you could submit a claim for up to $125 cash payment.

EQUIFAX DATA BREACH WHO WAS AFFECTED FREE

As part of the settlement individual consumers were able to claim up to $20,000 for any losses or fraud caused by the breach or free credit-monitoring services. Last summer, Equifax agreed to pay $700 million to settle federal and state investigations into how it handled the massive data breach.

EQUIFAX DATA BREACH WHO WAS AFFECTED INSTALL

Hackers were able to get access to a multitude of consumers' private information, including names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, credit card numbers and even driver's license numbers.ĭuring the investigation into the breach, Equifax admitted the company was informed in March 2017 that hackers could exploit a vulnerability in its system, but it failed to install the necessary patches. The Equifax data breach, first announced in September 2017, is one of the largest in history, with 147 million consumers affected, according to the Federal Trade Commission. 'As American citizens, we cannot be complacent about protecting our sensitive, personal data,' he says. Yet Bowdich urged consumers to remain vigilant when it comes to protecting their information.

Equifax data breach who was affected