DATA BREACH at EQUIFAX CREDIT COMPANY
Posted Date: September 8, 2017
WHEN: (First Reported): Reported Publicly by Equifax September 7, 2017
WHAT: Equifax is one of the 3 major Credit Reporting Agencies. Equifax publicly reported a breach of their systems which was discovered on July 29, 2017. The breach led to the compromise of approximately 143 million consumers' personal data.
Consumer data involved in the breach included credit cards numbers, Social Security Numbers, birth dates, addresses, Driver's License Numbers, and "certain dispute documents with personal identifying information."
WHO DOES THIS ALERT AFFECT: There is the potential for personal data compromise for any U.S. consumer.
MACY'S ACTION: We have assessed the situation and want you to know that the Equifax breach did not involve a breach of Macy's Inc. systems. We will continue to monitor developments.
Consumers should be aware that the level of information compromised at Equifax could be used to cause financial harms or commit identity frauds at almost any business or at some government agencies. If we suspect suspicious account or online activity at macys.com, we take action to notify customers and often block accounts to prevent misuse by criminals. Unfortunately, no security or anti-fraud measures can be 100% effective. But our customers are never held responsible for fraudulent charges and we will work diligently with you to protect your personal data.
RECOMMENDED CUSTOMER ACTION:
1. Visit Equifax's home page for the latest information on the breach at https://www.equifax.com/personal/ . Equifax also provides and an application to see if your data has been compromised.
2. Remain vigilant for incidents of fraud and identity theft by reviewing bank and credit card account statements and monitoring your credit reports regularly. You may obtain a free copy of your credit report from each company listed below once every 12 months by requesting your report online at www.annualcreditreport.com , calling toll-free 1-877-322-8228, or mailing an Annual Credit Report Request Form (available at www.annualcreditreport.com ) to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA, 30348-5281. You may also purchase a copy of your credit report by contacting any of the credit reporting agencies below:
3. If you believe you are the victim of identity theft, you should contact the proper law enforcement authorities, including local law enforcement, and you should consider contacting your state's attorney general and/or the Federal Trade Commission ("FTC"). You may also contact the FTC to obtain additional information about avoiding identity theft.
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Federal Trade Commision , Consumer Response Center |
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600 Pennsylvania Avenue |
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NW Washington, DC 20580 |
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www.ftc.gov/idtheft |
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877-IDTHEFT (438-4338) |
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4. You may obtain information from the FTC and the credit reporting agencies listed above about placing a fraud alert and/or credit freeze on your credit reports.