Equifax, one of the nation’s largest credit reporting company has revealed that 143 million Americans may have had their personal information hacked from the company’s website, exposing their social security numbers, credit cards, addresses, names and dates of birth to the fraudsters who stole the information. The 143 victims mean that nearly to thirds of the adult U.S. population have had their information stolen and are risk. Here is how to know whether your information has been hacked and what to do: Equifax created a website consumers can check if their data was breached, www.equifaxsecurity2017.com. The company says it will offer a free year of service from its subsidiary, TrustedID, which monitors credit reports. Experts have also suggested that if you have had your information stolen, you should sign up for services that go beyond typical credit freezing and alert services, such as Lifelock, EZ Shield and Identity Guard. Also, check your credit reports with Equifax and other credit reporting companies. Check you bank and credit card statements.
Jeffrey Newman represents whistleblowers.
