An Examination of the Equifax Cybersecurity Breach

Credit bureaus serve a critical function in our financial system and have become a daily part of every American's life. Every day, these institutions intersect in people's attempts to get credit cards, car loans, mortgages, and other items. Consumers may know about their involvement in their lives, such as when they directly request a credit report, but sometimes they do not, like when a company requests a background check to determine their eligibility for a cell phone. The ability of Americans to easily access credit is one of the many things that make our economy and our country the envy of the world. It is also why this breach is so shocking and concerning. Equifax experienced a cybersecurity breach which potentially impacted more than 145 million U.S. consumers. The data that was taken included the names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses, and in some cases driver's license numbers. In addition, credit card numbers for approximately 209,000 consumers and dispute documents with personally identifiable information for approximately 182,000 consumers were accessed. According to Equifax, the unauthorized access took place from mid-May through July 2017, with Equifax discovering the situation on July 29 and then finally cutting off the intruders. Why did it take Equifax 6 weeks from the time it learned of the breach to tell the public, the regulators, and the 145 million American victims about it? Why were Equifax executives trading during this time? How strong were and are Equifax's cybersecurity practices? After the breach, what interactions did the company have with other credit bureaus and Government agencies, in order to understand what, if anything, can be improved in terms of information sharing and mitigating consumer harm? There are valid and important questions about the steps Equifax has taken to remediate customers and whether more needs to be done to minimize the potential harm to those affected.

• | Author: Housing And Urban Committee on Banking, Housing Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs United States Senate
• | Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• | Publication Date: Jul 03, 2018
• | Number of Pages: 286 pages
• | Language: English
• | Binding: Paperback
• | ISBN-10: 1720629080
• | ISBN-13: 9781720629085