Millions of American citizens will find that their social security numbers were stolen due to a critical Equifax Hack. The security breach affected one of the largest credit reporting companies operating in the USA. As a result of the malicious intrusion the hackers behind the attack were able to obtain information on over 40% of the whole country’s population.
The Equifax Hack Lead to a Massive Social Security Numbers Breach
We have just received reports of a serious security incident. One of the biggest consumer credit reporting agencies operating in the United States Equifax has become the victim of a hacker intrusion. The magnitude of the crime is rated as severe due to the fact that the criminals have been able to extract private data of over 143 million US citizens. The hackers have obtained the social security numbers of them and possibly other information as well.
Information about the incident was posted officially by the company in a public statement. According to officials from Equifax the hackers were able to compromise private servers. The incidents itself has happened in the period May-2017 2017. The experts who are investigating the hack state that the following types of data have been extracted: social security numbers (SSN), addresses, date of birth, driver license numbers and payment card details of approximately 209 000 US citizens. In additions the criminals have obtained other types of documents that also contain identifying information, such listings of about 182 000 consumers have been accessed. Private data on Canadian and British residents have also been stolen after a criminal group was able to exploit the security of a US-based website application.
Further Information About the Equifax Hack
According to the video statement issued by Rick Smith, Equifax’s CEO the incident was revealed on July 29th. The company’s team discovered that criminals have been able to gain unauthorized access to data files hosted on their network. Immediately the security team joined forces with a leading cyber security company or conduct a comprehensive review. Equifax is working with law enforcement in tracing down the criminals behind the attack. The video message made by Smith showcases states that the Equifax hack has not discovered unauthorized entry into the core consumer or commercial credit reporting databases.
We remind our readers that this is not the first incident of this type. Last year hackers posted on the underground markets posting about a high-profile database reportedly derived from an unauthorized breach for Experian and WhoIs. According to the criminals the set contains information about 203 419 083 accounts. The price then was in Bitcoins having the equivalent price of $600. The claimed database includes the following types of information: full names, address, date of birth, marital status, delivery point barcode, FIPS state and country code, apartment, Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) income classification code, income details, credit rating details, assimilation code, mail delivery records, customer’s ethnicity, religion, language and other personal data of Experian’s customers.
Consequences of the Equifax Hack
Equifax has created a special site from where the customers can access in-depth information about the incident. Using it consumers can check if their information has been potentially impacted by the hacker’s attack. This is possible through a program called “TrustedID Premier” which offers all victims credit file monitoring and identity theft protection. The company is also sending direct mail notices to users who appear to be impacted. Other institutions that have been contacted due to the Equinox hack include the US state and federal regulators and attorney generals.
The security company that is currently investigating the intrusion is also in charge of creating in-depth recommendations and taking the necessary precautions to defend against future hacks like this one.
Martin Beltov
Martin graduated with a degree in Publishing from Sofia University. As a cyber security enthusiast he enjoys writing about the latest threats and mechanisms of intrusion.
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