You essentially can’t get on the internet without seeing plenty of information about the Equifax data breach. I won’t regurgitate what’s already covered and explained better than I’m capable of, I’m simply documenting what I did to protect myself. Though I did spend some time looking around and surprisingly Equifax PR seems to have summarized it well enough Here if you want more info.
First off, you should address the theft of your data in whichever way gives you the most peace of mind. For myself, I decided just freezing my credit was right for me as I have no plans of opening any new lines of credit in the foreseeable future, and to my knowledge should mitigate the need for credit monitoring. If you decided the same but feel overwhelmed or uneasy, you shouldn’t. I froze my credit with the big 3 in about 10 minutes (almost) without any hassle.
Alright Let’s Do This.
I called the numbers below and followed the automated prompts. Have your SSN, street address, pen/paper for noting security pins, and a credit card ready. In my state of Florida it costs $10 for the TransUnion freeze and $10 for Experian. Equifax is temporarily waiving fees.
Included direct links to the perspective companies contact pages in case you would like to verify the numbers.
TransUnion: 888-909-8872
Equifax: 800-685-1111
Experian: 888-397-3742
Other than Equifax giving me only one chance to hear my unique pin (I assume they’re mailing it to me as well) everything went quickly. Supposedly if you can prove you’re a victim of ID theft you can get all fees waived from Trans and Experian, but I didn’t want to deal with mailing in proof and waiting on verification so I pay the ($20 total) price. I’ve also read that people are having problems getting through on the phone, if you run into that just try again in non-peak hours.
Good luck, and as usual if you have any questions or need assistance Contact me.