BATON ROUGE, LA – With reports of an
additional 2.4 million people being impacted by the 2017 Equifax data breach,
Attorney General Jeff Landry is reminding consumers how to protect their
identities from being compromised.
Last year, General Landry issued a Public
Service Announcement listing what type of information may have
been compromised in the Equifax breach as well as tips on what people should do
to keep their information safe. The latest update from the company is
additional consumers had their names and partial driver's license numbers
stolen by the attackers not their Social Security numbers.
“It is unfortunate that this incident is still affecting
Louisiana consumers and devastating families and businesses,” said General
Landry. “My office has been and will continue working diligently to help the people of Louisiana
who may have had their information compromised as a result of this breach.”
“Protecting Louisiana consumers is a top priority for me
and my office, and that is why I joined other Attorneys General in a letter to
Equifax explaining the types of complaints we have received,” continued General
Landry. “We encourage consumers to take precautions and know the immediate
steps to make in the event of a data breach.”
General Landry offered the following tips to protect
consumers’ identities in the event of a data breach:
- Pull your credit reports checking
for any new accounts you have not opened, any suspicious usage on existing
accounts, or any inquiries you did not initiate. Check your credit reports
from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion for free by visiting www.annualcreditreport.com.
- Consider freezing your credit
reports which makes it more difficult for someone trying to open a
new account in your name. Know that Equifax Security Freeze fees will be
waved for the immediate future.
- Monitor your credit card
accounts looking for charges you do not recognize and report
suspicious charges right away. If you do not recognize accounts or
activity on your credit report, visit www.IdentityTheft.gov.
- Place a fraud alert which
notifies businesses to take additional steps in confirming your identity
before granting credit.
- File your taxes early to
ensure that you have the tax information needed to do so before the
scammer does.