The Practicon Viewpoint by Ann Page Griffin

HOW COULD THE EQUIFAX BREACH AFFECT YOU?

In September 2017, Equifax, one of three nationwide credit reporting agencies that track and rate the financial history of consumers, reported a data breach affecting approximately 143 million people. The breach occurred between mid-May and July 2017. Cyber criminals accessed names, Social Security numbers, and birth dates for about 44% of the U.S. population, plus credit card numbers for about 201,000 U.S. customers.

Credit card fraud and identity theft are the obvious increased risks resulting from this breach. Coping with either is a nightmare of wasted time and money; however, keep in mind that identity theft is a more extensive, difficult problem than credit card fraud alone. Years ago I worked with a dentist whose identity was stolen by an IRS employee to allow her boyfriend whose name was the same as the dentist to run wild using a new identity with an excellent credit rating. Three years and thousands of dollars paid to attorneys later, the dentist was finally free of the ramifications of this theft. While credit card fraud allows purchases in your name by the thief, identity theft may involve the opening of bank or credit card accounts, a fake driver’s license, a replacement Social Security card, stolen income tax refunds, burglarizing retirement accounts, rental or leases of real estate, etc. In 2016, experts estimate that over $16 billion was stolen via identity theft from over 15 million Americans.

What should you do about the Equifax breach? First, visit equifaxsecurity2017.com and click on the Am I Impacted button. If you were caught in the breach, a message will inform you. If the message indicates that you may have been affected by the breach, enroll in Equifax’s free one-year fraud monitoring program, Trusted ID Premier Credit Protection. Next, get a free credit report from the three national credit monitoring agencies: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Check these reports at least quarterly for one year to catch any surreptitious or suspicious activity. For added protection and convenience, consider getting Credit Karma, a free financial app which is highly rated for tracking personal credit history and scores.

If you detect a problem, seek professional advice immediately. Contact your credit card carrier, your bank, your accountant, your mortgage holder, your investment counselor, and your attorney. Identity theft is an enormous problem, a stressful challenge, best handled by preventive measures:

• Never lend your credit card to another person
• Never allow your office credit card to be misused
• Use caution in giving your Social Security number to any person or agency
• Check your credit score regularly at one or all three of the reporting agencies
• Be aware of an approximate date tax refunds should be received and investigate if they are not received
• Do the same with Social Security payments

In other words, take immediate defensive action as soon as a problem is discovered.