We’re ensuring consumers have the tools they need to protect themselves from identity thieves.

PIRG Consumer Watchdog
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When Equifax lost the critical financial data of more than 147 million Americans, it was a startling reminder that we need a lot more control over our personal information.

We didn't hire the three big credit unions—Equifax, Experian and TransUnion—to collect and sell financial data about us, and we certainly didn't give them permission to lose it. So why should we have to pay them to keep our financial information private and secure? We shouldn’t. And we should have more control over our own information.

We’re working to make sure that consumers know their rights after Equifax exposed the financial data of more than 147 million Americans. If you haven't taken steps to protect yourself after the Equifax data breach, we recommend you take a look at the resources provided below. We answer some of the most common questions we get from consumers about how they can protect themselves from identity thieves.

Keeping Your Online Identity Safe

We live in the age of big data. More and more information about the private details of our lives is collected, analyzed and sold by massive financial institutions, and, too often, this information is handled irresponsibly, or put at risk without our consent or control.

We Need New Rules And Safeguards

It is unacceptable that Equifax—one of the gatekeepers to our financial success—would leave itself vulnerable to an attack of the magnitude we saw in 2017. And after the Equifax hack became front page news, it was revealed that the credit bureau could likely have prevented the breach—and it certainly could have done a much better job helping consumers protect themselves in the aftermath.

If you haven’t taken steps to protect yourself, you should. The best way to prevent new account identity theft is to freeze your credit report. When you want credit, you can temporarily unfreeze your report.

But in most states, protecting your credit will require you to pay a fee, and jump through hoops to ensure all three credit agencies protect your data. We shouldn’t have to rely on firms like Equifax to protect our financial information, and we shouldn’t have to pay them to fix their mistakes. 

With the support of our members, we’ll continue getting the word out to consumers so they can stay informed, keep themselves protected from identity theft, and continue pushing for positive change in the financial marketplace.

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RESOURCE: Protect Yourself from Identity Theft
MAP: ACCESS TO FREE SECURITY FREEZES BY STATE