Consumer Alert: Freeze Your Credit Reports: RWU Prof Advises

BRISTOL, RI—Equifax, the credit reporting company used by lenders to decide who may get a mortgage and at what rate, reported a Cyberattack this week. The news means social security numbers and other personal financial data, have fallen into the hands of someone who can use the information to try to trick and exploit victims. Data on 143 million Americans was taken.

Cybersecurity expert Doug White, a professor at Roger Williams University, recommends freezing credit reports.

The cyberattack on the Equifax consumer credit reporting agency poses a major risk to millions of Americans, underscoring the need for greater vigilance and perhaps new legislation, he said Friday.

“Equifax lost the credit data (including Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, birthdays, etc.) of 143 million Americans (about 45 percent) through a website hack,” said White, chair of cybersecurity and networking at RWU and co-host of the Secure Digital Life podcast. “This means someone has access to a great deal of personal information about individuals which can be used for identity theft, spear phishing attacks, etc. Much like the U.S. Office of Personnel Management hack, it puts people at risk of further exploitation.”

So what should members of the public do in response?

“Citizens should be vigilant when approached by email, etc., using personal information,” White said. “The best thing to do is to freeze all your credit reports (Equifax is offering a free service temporarily) and be careful. There is little other recourse.”

Such incidents might spur calls for stiffer penalties for companies who collect and allow sensitive data to be breached, White said. “Until such a time as we have significant penalties for allowing these types of breaches to occur, they will continue to happen,” he said.

Attorney General Peter Kilmartin provided some additional steps to take. Consumers can visit the Equifax website and find out if their data was stolen. The site, www.equifaxsecurity2017.com, asks for the last name and last 6 digits in the social security number.

"In accordance with Rhode Island law, Equifax notified the Attorney General’s Office of the breach late yesterday," his office said.

“This may be one of the largest, if not the largest, data breaches that has ever occurred, and consumers are right to be concerned about the potential impact,” said Kilmartin. “We always advise consumers to utilize Equifax and the other national credit monitoring services whenever there is a data breach, which makes this breach even more troubling. Even the most hyper-vigilant consumers are now vulnerable to identity theft. In addition to the steps Equifax has established to help consumers, it is more important than ever to closely monitor activity on all your financial accounts and to immediately report suspicious transactions.”

Here is the rest of the press release.

According to information provided by the company, the breach took place from mid-May through July 2017. The information accessed primarily includes names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and, in some instances, driver’s license numbers of approximately 143 million consumers. In addition, credit card numbers for approximately 209,000 consumers, and certain dispute documents with personal identifying information for approximately 182,000 U.S. consumers, were accessed.

Equifax has established a dedicated website, www.equifaxsecurity2017.com, to help consumers determine if their information has been potentially impacted and to sign up for credit file monitoring and identity theft protection. The offering, called TrustedID Premier, includes 3-Bureau credit monitoring of Equifax, Experian and TransUnion credit reports; copies of Equifax credit reports; the ability to lock and unlock Equifax credit reports; identity theft insurance; and Internet scanning for Social Security numbers – all complimentary to consumers for one year.

The website also provides additional information on steps consumers can take to protect their personal information. Equifax recommends that consumers with additional questions visit www.equifaxsecurity2017.com or contact a dedicated call center at 866-447-7559, which the company set up to assist consumers. The call center is open every day (including weekends) from 7:00 a.m. – 1:00 a.m. EST.

In addition to the website, Equifax will send direct mail notices to consumers whose credit card numbers or dispute documents with personal identifying information were impacted.

The Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Unit is closely monitoring developments with the Equifax data breach and will continue to update consumers with new information as it becomes available. For information on this data breach, please visit www.riag.ri.gov (click on Consumer Protection Information on the homepage).

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