Quick Pointers for Protecting your Identity after the Equifax Security Breach

The recent security breach at the Equifax credit reporting agency exposed extensive personal information on 143 million Americans.  Computer hackers gained access to consumers’ names, addresses, social security numbers and dates of birth from Equifax files, creating serious potential problems for consumers.

There are 3 major credit reporting agencies:

Equifax          Phone  800-685-1111

Experian         Phone  888-397-3742

TransUnion     Phone  800-888-4213

You may wish to call each of them to place a credit or fraud alert.  The fraud alerts notify vendors that you may be a victim of identity theft and vendors should verify the person is actually you. The alerts only last 90 days and must be renewed.

• You may want to order a credit report to review a copy of your credit report so you may identify and address anything that looks unusual or is not recognizable as your activity.
• Review your bank and credit cards activity monthly, if not weekly for unusual activity.
• Do not give out personal information, either over the phone or on the internet.
• Avoid emails and links within emails that look authentic. If you are not sure, call the company and ask for verification that the email is authentic.
• Change passwords on accounts.
• Visit the Equifax website to learn more. 

If you have any questions about the above material or wish to speak to an attorney, please contact Tiveron Law at 716-636-7600. Tiveron Law is located at 2410 North Forest Road in Amherst, New York 14068, with additional offices in Buffalo, Lancaster, Lockport, and Ellicottville.