Equifax reports data breach possibly affecting 143 million U.S. consumers
Another day, another company compromised through a cyber attack. With this latest high profile attack on Equifax (EFX), personal information, such as Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and driver’s license numbers as well as credit card numbers for tens of thousands of people. Given the sensitivity of the information, we strongly suspect IT budgets at Equifax, Experian (EXPGY) and TransUnion (TRU) will see a shift to favor cyber security, a key aspect of our Safety & Security investing theme.
Credit-reporting company Equifax Inc. said Thursday that hackers gained access to some of its systems, compromising the personal information of about 143 million U.S. consumers.
Atlanta-based Equifax—one of three major credit-reporting firms—said an internal investigation revealed hackers exploited a vulnerability in a U.S. website application to gain unauthorized access to files from mid-May through July. The company, which also offers credit-monitoring and identity-theft protection products to guard consumers’ personal information, said it discovered the breach on July 29.
Equifax said hackers gained access to systems containing customers’ Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and driver’s license numbers. The company said credit-card numbers for approximately 209,000 U.S. consumers were accessed, as well as dispute documents with sensitive information for another 182,000 people.
Source: Equifax Reports Data Breach Possibly Affecting 143 Million U.S. Consumers – WSJ
