The Equifax breach and credit card apps

GetawaysRus

Level 2 Member
It was revealed today that Equifax suffered a massive data breach between May and July. The information I read indicated that data on 143 million Americans was stolen. Many of us will need to think about what to do to protect our credit and our identities.

I am considering if it would be wise to take some proactive steps. Since this data breach reportedly includes data such as social security numbers, birtdates, and drivers license numbers, the potential for damage is significant. I enjoy and benefit from the miles and points game, but I am considering freezing my credit. This could make it more difficult in the future to open new credit cards.

So I am curious about 2 things:
1. Are others considering taking some action now that information on the breach is public? What are you thinking of doing?
2. For those who may have frozen their credit in the past, how did this impact your ability to get new credit cards opened? I know very little about freezing and unfreezing credit.
 

Matt

Administrator
Staff member
One thing I noticed was reference to waiving class action rights or other recompense by signing up for their in house monitoring service. I'm personally holding off, I have Credit Karma and Sesame set up from long ago that alert me to new credit inquiries (not foolproof) and will allow that to cover me for alerts until I figure out a proper course of action.
 

AnyNameYouWish

Level 2 Member
The offered search showed my and my husbands info wasn't involved so I don't plan to change anything. We do have stolen identity insurance. I don't plan to sign away any rights. We'll see how this goes. Our info gets shared so much with so many different companies. While a breach is a problem, I don't believe there is anyway to keep your information completely safe with the exception of never using it. There is no reason for me to believe my info is any more compromised than it was last year. That would change if I started having issues with fraudulent charges, issues with new accounts I didn't open, etc.
 

HTaufReisen

Level 2 Member
CC from Discover offer some additional free services
We are monitoring thousands of risky websites for your Social Security Number and we have not found any matches. We are also monitoring your Experian credit file for new accounts opened in your name and we have not found any since you signed up. If we find your SSN on a risky website, or any new accounts show up on your Experian credit file in the future, you will receive an alert notification.
 

CWAL

Level 2 Member
The offered search showed my and my husbands info wasn't involved so I don't plan to change anything. We do have stolen identity insurance. I don't plan to sign away any rights.
My understanding is that in order to use the search, you already did sign away your rights.

If you believe click through EULAs are enforceable, that is. :)
 

HariOm

Transcendent Level
NYT money columnist recommends implementing both a credit freeze and fraud alerts. What would be the point of fraud alerts if your reports are frozen?
 

AnyNameYouWish

Level 2 Member
They updated it on Friday after complaints.

September 8, 2017

We understand that some consumers are experiencing difficulties getting the answers and support they need through our website and call center. Ramping up the website and call center to handle the anticipated volume is ongoing and we are focused on making improvements as quickly as possible. We apologize for any inconvenience this process has created.

Thus far today, we’ve made the following adjustments:

1). YOU CAN DETERMINE YOUR STATUS IMMEDIATELY
Some consumers who visited the website soon after its launch failed to receive confirmation clarifying whether or not they were potentially impacted. That issue is now resolved, and we encourage those consumers to revisit the site to receive a response that clarifies their status.

2). NO WAIVER OF RIGHTS FOR THIS CYBER SECURITY INCIDENT
In response to consumer inquiries, we have made it clear that the arbitration clause and class action waiver included in the Equifax and TrustedID Premier terms of use does not apply to this cybersecurity incident.

3). EXPANDED OUR CALL CENTER
We have tripled our call center team to over 2000 agents and continue to add agents.

Our goal is to make this process as convenient and consistent as possible. We will continue to identify steps to improve this process.

And we will continue as well to listen to your comments and suggestions.
 

italdesign

Level 2 Member
As a serial churner, I'm pondering what to do if it says you "may be" impacted. Freezing CRs will be a pain in the ass for future apps, and fraud alerts are useless when you have a million cards. What are you going to do?
 

HariOm

Transcendent Level
As a serial churner, I'm pondering what to do if it says you "may be" impacted. Freezing CRs will be a pain in the ass for future apps, and fraud alerts are useless when you have a million cards. What are you going to do?
Reportedly it says everyone may be impacted, even when the NYT reporter entered bogus name and numbers. After ample reading, my impression is that practically every American adult may be affected. I froze all reports at the big 3, plus Innovis. Would rather have to deal with unfreezing than with ID theft. Even though we have complimentary Experian credit protection with the $1 million ID theft coverage, it would still be a huge hassle to unwind ID theft. I too am a serial churner and have never dealt with temporary unfreezes, and am happy to do so in this circumstance.
 

DrAwesome81

Level 2 Member
Any idea if the banks are going to adjust for this? I.e. will freezing Equifax result in more credit card denials, or will they just use Experian or Transunion, knowing that people have a legitimate reason for freezing Equifax now?
 

knick1959

Level 2 Member
Any idea if the banks are going to adjust for this? I.e. will freezing Equifax result in more credit card denials, or will they just use Experian or Transunion, knowing that people have a legitimate reason for freezing Equifax now?
Hmmm. If your personal data was leaked by Equifax, that doesn't mean a crook is only going to use it to apply for credit or other financial vehicles that check credit via Equifax. If they have your data it will work against ALL credit bureaus. Right? That's what I'm thinking.
 

italdesign

Level 2 Member
Already seeing multiple reports of reward program accounts being hacked - points depleted, contact info changed, etc. Not much you can do given the lack of security by some programs (such as IHG's 4 digit pin), but checking your account info once in a while might be good.
 

Suzie

Level 2 Member
Already seeing multiple reports of reward program accounts being hacked - points depleted, contact info changed, etc. Not much you can do given the lack of security by some programs (such as IHG's 4 digit pin), but checking your account info once in a while might be good.
Do you have any recourse if this happens? I keep a spreadsheet, but it sounds like a nightmare to get straightened out.
 

pre

Level 2 Member
Do you have any recourse if this happens? I keep a spreadsheet, but it sounds like a nightmare to get straightened out.
Reading r/churning, it sounds like a few folks have been affected. They somehow change one's associated email and PIN, often without notifying the previous email account holder :/

Fortunately, all those data points suggested IHG was able to reverse things in time, even when reservation bookings had been made.

I've been using Awardwallet to monitor my points/miles and expiry dates, and am glad they update regularly, including notifying me of changes or inability to log in
 

GRiZ

Level 2 Member
I implemented a Fraud Alert (FA) and I know it's working because each time I apply for a card or bank account it goes pending and they need to call me.

Even making account changes sometimes requires them to call me on the number I provided on the FA request. That's a good I guess, but it's only temporary, also the questions I get asked are all readily available from the hacked report so I don't know how useful it really is aside from requiring that they call me on the number I provided (meaning if I call them, they don't trust it because of number spoofing, they need to call me back). Also the alert is temporary and is already half over...
 
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