[For US Folks ?] Equifax Breach $$ Info

[Lumos]

Maybe this works for non-US folks too, but it does mention SS numbers ??
No harm in checking and it may even be worth something to some folks.

Quote:THE EQUIFAX DATA BREACH SETTLEMENT

Between March and July, 2017, Equifax had a data breach which affected 147 million consumers.
Social Security numbers, addresses, birth dates, credit card numbers and other personal information were leaked posing both a short term and long term risk to your credit health.
Identity theft from data breaches like this can affect millions of people in a very damaging way.
This is so important if you have worked hard on your credit, don’t let this make things harder for you.

The good news is that last Monday, July 22, Equifax settled a complaint from the FTC to compensate those that may have had their personal information compromised.
The company has agreed to allocate as much as 700 million dollars to compensate those affected by its negligence.

Steps for you to take to be compensated.

First, you need to find out if your data was compromised.
Since it hit 147 million people, there are many who will have been affected.

Equifax has created a look up tool to determine if your data was compromised.
Go to this site, and enter your last name and the last six digits of your Social Security number:

Code:

https://eligibility.equifaxbreachsettlement.com/en/eligibility

If your data was not compromised, you will get the following message:
“Based on the information you provided, our records indicate that your personal information was not impacted by this incident. Equifax has worked hard to make the “Am I Impacted” tool as accurate and up-to-date as possible.”

If you feel it is inaccurate, the message will provide a way to contact the settlement Administrator to state your case.
You will need solid proof that your information was compromised by the Equifax data breach, and not through other means.
This would be difficult to prove, but it may not hurt to try.

If your data was compromised, you will get the following message:

“Based on the information you provided, our records indicate your personal information was impacted by this incident.”

The next screen will tell you how to file a claim.

CLAIM OPTIONS:

There are several options for the claim.

MONETARY COMPENSATION
You can request monetary compensation.
This can be up to $125, however there is a limited pool of money (probably around $425 million at the most) and the actual amount you will receive will be based on how many people file claims.
Without knowing how many of the 147 million will file claims, it is uncertain how much each person will actually receive.
Regardless, this is an option, and there is a chance you may get the full $125.
You can choose to receive the payment by check or debit card. These payments will take place sometime after January 23, 2020.

10 YEARS OF FREE CREDIT MONITORING
Another option is to accept up to 10 years of FREE credit monitoring instead of monetary compensation.
This can be useful since it will provide you an alert when your credit history gets checked, or a credit card or loan is being opened in your name, or other possible security issues.
It includes credit monitoring with all three credit bureaus for four years, and then six more years with Equifax.
You will also get $1,000,000 of identity theft insurance.

$125 is a significant amount of money, but the free credit monitoring is even more valuable.

OTHER INFORMATION
If you have already suffered from the security breach, and have been working on it, you have a third choice.
You can receive compensation of $25 dollars for every hour you have worked on repairing the situation as well as costs incurred from things like unauthorized charges to your account, cost of freezing your credit report, related notary fees, and other expenses.

If you are able to show that your personal information has been misused, you are eligible for seven years of free identity restoration services.
To pursue this, you will need to call the FTC Settlement Administrator at 1-833-759-2982.

Also, as part of the settlement, Equifax has agreed to provide six FREE credit reports to everyone in the settlement for the next seven years beginning January, 2020.
This is in addition to the one free annual report they are required by law to provide.
It is strongly suggested to add this to your 2020 calendar and take advantage of it as you continue working on your credit in the future.

You have the right to opt out of the settlement.
You may wish to do this if you want to pursue further legal action against Equifax in the future.

USEFUL DATES
Deadline to file a claim is January 22, 2020.
Monetary settlement checks will be issued sometime after January 23, 2020.
Deadline to opt out of the settlement is November 19, 2019.

OFFICIAL INFORMATION
https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/cases-pr...settlement

[Lumos]

And a wee bit more to properly temper the info above, honestly:

Quote:Wednesday, the Federal Trade Commission announced that the payout was likely to be “nowhere near” that amount after more than 4 million people visited the settlement site in the last week.

“The public response to the settlement has been overwhelming,” the FTC wrote in a Web posting. “Because the total amount available for these alternative payments is $31 million, each person who takes the money option is going to get a very small amount."

The FTC said that it released the bad news to try to encourage people to opt for the free credit monitoring instead of the cash payout.

“You can still choose the cash option on the claim form, but you will be disappointed with the amount you receive,” the FTC said.

Source:

Code:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/07/31/equifax-promised-up-hack-now-ftc-says-youll-get-nowhere-near-that-amount/