Consumer complaint received 2017-09-13
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: CO
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports
Sub-product: Credit reporting
Issue: Problem with fraud alerts or security freezes

Complaint:
To Whom It May Concern : I am writing in regards to the Equifax data breach reported to have occurred mid-XXXX through XXXX of 2017. 

I am concerned about several things related to this breach, namely : There is a general lack of transparency from Equifax about the event. They made no effort to inform affected individuals of the breach and associated risks, instead issuing a press release. This release was some weeks after the discovery of the problemit should have been disclosed immediately so consumers could take appropriate action to protect themselves. 
Apparent illegal trading by Equifax executives made in light of discover of the breach, but before the breach was made public. This is unacceptable and should be investigated by the appropriate law enforcement agencies. ( http : XXXX ) Lack of transparency on who has been affected and to what extent. Equifaxs tool is returning value for random input, which leads me to believe that this tool is not actually checking anything, just returning a set response. ( https : XXXX ) Credit reporting infrastructure is not equipped to handle the number of requests. Equifax had several weeks between when the breach was discovered in XXXX and when it was announced in XXXX in which they could have scaled up IT infrastructure to handle an influx of credit reporting /freezing requests. I have tried multiple times in the last week to request credit reports through federal resources ( XXXX XXXX XXXX ) and none of the three credit bureaus were able to process my request. I also attempted to freeze my credit several times over the last few days, and none of the three credit bureaus were able to complete the request. In both reporting and freezing, the websites timed out or gave me error messages relating the problems to higher than normal load. While this is a valid response, I think Equifax should have scaled up to handle the higher than normal load that anyone would have anticipated following news of the breach.
After the breach occurred, many sources suggested that the most prudent way to protect myself from fraud is to freeze my credit with each of the three credit agencies. I am very upset to note that I will be responsible for paying a fee to un-freeze my credit when I eventually need to use it. Equifax was negligent in protecting my information, and having to pay them to provide protection from an event caused by their own negligence feels like extortion. If each of the 143MM consumers affected by the breach were to freeze their credit and subsequently pay Equifax to unfreeze, it is a windfall of almost {$1.00} XXXX for Equifax aloneand the same amount will be paid to each of the three credit bureaus. This is unacceptable, and I ask that you use all means available to you to compel the bureaus to waive the fees to unfreeze in light of Equifaxs negligence.
I would request the following of you : Instigate a full investigation of the breach and subsequent actions of Equifax to determine who perpetrated the breach, who bears responsibility for preventing an attack on my data, and if Equifax followed proper legal course of action in reporting the breach Apply pressure on all three credit bureaus to provide, free of charge, extensive identity theft protection for all customers on their databases. 
Work to modernize the credit system to include two-factor authentication, enable the American public to monitor their credit more easily, and to require more strict information security for all three credit bureaus. 
If negligence is determined in the investigation, punish those responsible to the full extent of the law. Equifax should not be able to pay their way out of thisthey took the trust of the public and threw it away, and should be punished for that. 


I look forward to following your response to this incident. Please let me know how you plan on addressing the issues raised above, and what action you intend to take to right them. 

Sincerely, XXXX XXXX XXXX, CO XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation