Equifax Data Breach Was Far Worse Than The Company Initially Reported

The Equifax data breach was far worse than the company initially reported. The latest SEC filing by Equifax details the types of sensitive information exposed in the September 2017 data breach.

The credit agency did not reveal any new about the Equifax data breach. However, the company did reveal the details of the Equifax data breach.

Equifax stated that 146.6 million people had their names and dates of birth exposed. The company also said that the hacker accessed 145.5 million Social Security numbers and the address information for 99 million people.

The hacker also gained access to the gender data for 27.3 million people. They also were able to gain access to 20.3 million consumers’ phone numbers and 17.6 million driver’s license numbers.

The Equifax data breach also exposed 209,000 payment card numbers and expiration dates and 97,500 tax ID numbers.

In addition, Equifax stated hackers also gained access images uploaded to the company’s online dispute portal. They were able to access approximately 182,000 consumers who filed complaints.

Equifax also explained in detail what type of image files and documents from the credit agency’s online dispute portal were stolen through the hack, including:

• 38,000 driver’s licenses
• 12,000 Social Security and tax ID cards
• 3,200 passports and passport cards
• 3,000 other documents, including military and state IDs and resident alien cards.

Equifax explained to concerned members of Congress that victims were notified via direct mail in the Autumn of 2017.

Equifax’s experts found no evidence that consumer employment and income were accessed.

According to Equifax, it is releasing this information as part of its “commitment to transparency.”