Equifax Data Breach

[ddscook]

Any thoughts on the Equifax Data breach? Anything we need to be doing besides monitoring our credit regularly?

 

 

Edit: Just realized there's already a thread going on this topic.

https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/forums/topic/major-equifax-data-breach/

 

 

[Dr. Mom]

Here is the link to see if you are impacted:

https://www.equifaxsecurity2017.com/potential-impact/

My husband and I are, but our children are not.  I keep a fraud alert through Transunion.  I never bothered with a credit freeze despite having been a victim of identity theft because I am not going to pretend that anything can totally prevent it.  We are past the point that we care what our credit score is.  I monitor our credit cards for fraudulent charges and don't keep very many of them in the first place.  Hopefully lenders and credit card companies will realize they need to be more proactive in their practices in the first place.

[Peds]

Dr. Mom wrote:

Here is the link to see if you are impacted:

https://www.equifaxsecurity2017.com/potential-impact/

My husband and I are, but our children are not.  I keep a fraud alert through Transunion.  I never bothered with a credit freeze despite having been a victim of identity theft because I am not going to pretend that anything can totally prevent it.  We are past the point that we care what our credit score is.  I monitor our credit cards for fraudulent charges and don’t keep very many of them in the first place.  Hopefully lenders and credit card companies will realize they need to be more proactive in their practices in the first place.

Click to expand...

Umm you should freeze your credit.

[Dr. Mom]

Peds wrote:

Dr. Mom wrote:

Here is the link to see if you are impacted:

https://www.equifaxsecurity2017.com/potential-impact/

My husband and I are, but our children are not.  I keep a fraud alert through Transunion.  I never bothered with a credit freeze despite having been a victim of identity theft because I am not going to pretend that anything can totally prevent it.  We are past the point that we care what our credit score is.  I monitor our credit cards for fraudulent charges and don’t keep very many of them in the first place.  Hopefully lenders and credit card companies will realize they need to be more proactive in their practices in the first place.

Click to expand…

Umm you should freeze your credit.

Click to expand...

What happened to me was done by a family member.  A credit freeze would not have prevented it.  In my state, it is $10 to each agency every time you freeze  a credit report, and then another $10 to unfreeze it, and then another $10 to refreeze it, ad nauseum.  This Equifax data breach will be a major financial windfall to the other two companies and maybe even to it.  The fraud alert serves a similar purpose.  It is free.  I only file it with Transunion and they are responsible for getting the info to the other two companies. I do it every 4 months.  Takes less than 5 minutes to do both of us. I've been doing it for years.  My husband did get phone calls when he changed a credit card and opened a business line of credit.  So it works.  I would freeze in the situation where we were getting fraudulent attempts to open credit in our name.  If it happens, you file with the FTC and the police.  Then send the reports to the company that let someone fraudulently open the credit.

[Hatton]

I froze experian with no trouble but it did cost ten bucks.  Transunion would not accept a password ad nauseum.  I will try again from home wifi.  Equifax  all lines are busy.  Maybe I should do a fraud alert instead.

[Dr. Mom]

hatton1 wrote:

I froze experian with no trouble but it did cost ten bucks.  Transunion would not accept a password ad nauseum.  I will try again from home wifi.  Equifax  all lines are busy.  Maybe I should do a fraud alert instead.

Click to expand...

Do the fraud alert for sure.  You can always add the freeze if needed.  When a company needs to run a credit check, they often cannot tell you for sure which company they use.  So, you are stuck unfreezing and refreezing all three to the tune of $60, never mind all the little companies too. While we can afford it, the whole thing doesn't sit right with me.  I am going to pay the very company that caused the breach?  I don't think so.  Equifax isn't charging you till like November or for the first year of their credit monitoring service.  So kind of them.  What happens with the first unfreeze and refreeze?   When you sign up for monitoring be sure you aren't signing to automatically renew it for a charge in a year.

[Hatton]

I did not sign up for monitoring because that was pricier than the freeze. I also do not care about credit scores.