[Natfinwellness] Equifax Data Breach

Wed Sep 13 13:15:46 EDT 2017

Hello,

I am adding the HEFW group to this thread in case there are some people that have completely moved over to the new listserv.

I have been promoting the FTC resource that Colleen mentioned, and in the past I have touched on the value of 3rd party services for monitoring credit activity since things like CreditSesame & Credit Karma seem to come up at almost every workshop I do on credit.

I also point out that the data security in any service could be weak, as was the case with Credit Karma in 2014<https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2014/03/fandango-credit-karma-settle-ftc-charges-they-deceived-consumers> so to understand the potential risks when using those types of services & do research on them before signing up. I tend to stress the value of reviewing credit reports at least once per year from the credit bureaus directly at annualcreditreport.com, and I absolutely agree that avoiding monitoring will not help protect against identity theft.

Personally, it will be interesting to see how the Equifax breach will impact legislation and industry standards with disclosure of potential or confirmed data breaches. It may also impact how we talk about protecting your identity, not just as it relates to SSNs & credit bureaus, but also social site profiles, online purchase profiles, smart wallets (apple wallet, Samsung wallet, etc.) & the potential to impact things like careers or reputations, not just financial risks/costs. I am not a data security expert, but the nature of this game seems to be changing so rapidly that I feel I should be some days, just as a consumer.

My colleague, Kathy Sweedler, also posed an interesting question last night that maybe this group can help with answering…
Are there any laws that regulate businesses sharing SSNs with other businesses (e.g., lenders sharing SSNs with the credit bureaus)?

Best,
Andrea

Andrea Pellegrini
Assistant Director, Student Money Management Center
University Student Financial Services & Cashier Operations
University of Illinois System
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217.333.6228
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From: Natfinwellness <natfinwellness-bounces at lists.osu.edu> on behalf of Kris Alban <kalban at igrad.com>
Reply-To: National Financial Wellness Listserv <natfinwellness at lists.osu.edu>
Date: Wednesday, September 13, 2017 at 11:43 AM
To: National Financial Wellness Listserv <natfinwellness at lists.osu.edu>
Subject: Re: [Natfinwellness] Equifax Data Breach

Hi Niki,

This is a great question, and an issue which most experts believe will substantially increase in the coming years as most organizations realize that the data security standards currently in place are severely inadequate.

While you likely know that we do not typically endorse 3rd party services out of respect for our partner schools, I personally use CreditSesame to monitor my own credit.  It is free, updates me with a credit score every month, and alerts me when there is any type of change on my credit.  There are several other free services that do the same thing (ie. Credit Karma), and I always strongly recommend using one of these services to all of my friends, family and colleagues.

I can honestly say that I have not vetted any others and am guessing they are all equally effective, but am happy with the one I am using.  Important Note – these services do not protect you, they alert you to possible red flags on your credit which could be an early indicator of identity theft.  You must view each alert when it comes in to make sure that you recognize it, and take action if you do not.

Kris Alban
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From: Natfinwellness [mailto:natfinwellness-bounces at lists.osu.edu] On Behalf Of Niki Pechinski
Sent: Wednesday, September 13, 2017 9:19 AM
To: National Financial Wellness Listserv <natfinwellness at lists.osu.edu>
Subject: [Natfinwellness] Equifax Data Breach

Hello Financial Literacy Colleagues,

My name is Niki Pechinski, I am the Financial Literacy Educator at the University of Minnesota Duluth.

In light of the Equifax data breach, I am curious, how your conversations with students changed (or not changed) regarding credit retrieval and online security? I believe in safe online practices but I also don't think not monitoring credit is an effective way to reduce identity theft.

What do you think? I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Warmly,
Niki

Niki Pechinski
Financial Literacy Educator
University of MN Duluth
(218) 726-7039
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