AG Carr: Deadline for Free Equifax Credit Monitoring Today
Wednesday, January 31st, 2018
Attorney General Chris Carr is reminding all Georgians that Wednesday, January 31, 2018 is the last day to sign up for Equifax’s free credit monitoring service.
“The Equifax data breach that was announced in September 2017 compromised the names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and, in some cases, the driver’s license numbers, of 145 million Americans, including approximately 5 million Georgians,” said Attorney General Chris Carr. “In response to the breach, Equifax has been offering one year of its TrustedID credit monitoring services for free to anyone with a Social Security number. Our office is strongly encouraging consumers to take advantage of this service to help protect against identity theft.”
To sign up, go to equifaxsecurity2017.com by or before January 31, 2018. The service covers all three major credit reporting agencies – Equifax, TransUnion and Experian. If any suspicious activity appears on your credit report, you’ll get an alert. The free services also include a copy of your Equifax credit report, Social Security number monitoring, and identity theft insurance. In addition, for a year, you can freeze and unfreeze your Equifax credit file for free. Credit freezes help limit access to your credit file by identity thieves trying to open new accounts. You need to get freezes with all three credit reporting agencies for them to be effective. Here’s how to contact the other two credit reporting agencies:
1-888-397-3742
Transunion.com/credit-freeze/place-credit-freeze
1-800-680-7289
While credit monitoring and credit freezes will alert you to new credit files that are opened under your name, they do not prevent or alert you to fraudulent charges made using your existing credit or debit card accounts. The best way to protect yourself from such fraudulent charges is to check your credit and bank accounts regularly for any charges you do not recognize. If you suspect fraudulent activity, contact the financial institution immediately to report it and have replacement cards issued.
