Hi again, neighbors,

Hey, I found this! Thought I'd send it on, can't imaging PIRG would mind the share ~ maybe more folks will be inspired to support them :).

Karen

-------- Original Message --------

Karen B.,

Equifax has changed the end date for one of its offers. We have not changed our previous advice.

On Tuesday, one day before Equifax's offer of free credit freezes would have expired, the credit reporting agency extended the deadline for getting free freezes on Equifax credit reports.

The new deadline for getting a free Equifax credit freeze is now June 30. We called Equifax's freeze department and received confirmation of the change.

Although this gives consumers more time, there should be no deadline at all. Freezes should be free for consumers to get at any time -- and our federal and state staff are working hard to pass legislation to make this happen.

Regardless of this extension, you should act sooner than later if you haven't protected your information yet. Each day that goes by is another day an identity thief could open an account in your name if you don't have a freeze on your credit report.

Getting credit freezes at all three national credit bureaus remains the best action you can take after the Equifax breach, whether you were affected by it or not. Even though in most states you'll outrageously still have to pay fees at Experian and TransUnion, you should get the free freeze with Equifax while you still can.

Our step-by-step guide for placing credit freezes with all three bureaus is available here. FAQs about the Equifax data breach are available here.

Sincerely,

David Rossini
NMPIRG

P.S. We couldn't do this work without the support of folks like you. Donate today.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: NMPIRG <action@nmpirg.org>
Date: Mon, Jan. 29, 2018
Subject: Equifax credit freeze: Take action by Jan. 31
To: Karen B. King <kingkb@swcp.com>

Karen B.,

Have you taken action to protect your personal data?

Ahead of three changes to what Equifax is offering consumers following its breach of 145 million consumer records, I want to urge you to get a free credit freeze with Equifax by January 31 if you haven't already. That's the last day Equifax will waive the fee it normally charges consumers in most states to get credit freezes on Equifax credit reports.

Getting credit freezes at all three national credit bureaus is the best action you can take after the Equifax breach, whether you were affected by it or not. Even though you'll outrageously still have to pay fees at Experian and TransUnion, you should get the free freeze with Equifax while you still can.

Our step-by-step guide for placing credit freezes with all three bureaus is available here. FAQs about the Equifax data breach are available here.

Here's some more info on the three changes to what Equifax is offering consumers:

• TrustedID Premier: January 31 is the last day to sign up for TrustedID Premier, Equifax's initial offer after the breach. It provides one year of free services such as credit monitoring. It doesn't hurt to sign up for these services; however, you should know they are limited and, at best, only alert you to identity theft after it has occurred. Therefore, we also recommend you freeze your credit reports with all three national credit bureaus.
• Equifax Credit Freeze: January 31 is also the last day Equifax will waive the fee it normally charges consumers in most states to get credit freezes on their Equifax credit reports. We recommend that you take advantage of this option. The page for getting it is available here.
  • What is a credit freeze? It is a commonsense tool that allows consumers to freeze access to their credit history and scores, denying thieves the ability to open any fake accounts in their names.
  • Note: For complete protection, you'll need to freeze your reports with the other two credit bureaus, too. Blocking access to your credit report with one bureau but not the other two is like locking your front door but leaving your garage and back doors wide open.
• Lock & Alert: January 31 is the launch date for Lock & Alert, a service that will let consumers lock and unlock their Equifax credit reports indefinitely for free. This service only blocks access to Equifax credit reports, not credit reports at the other two bureaus. Locks appear to block access to credit reports the same way freezes do. However, freezes are a right by law and not conditional on terms set by companies. We will review the terms of service when they are made public to determine if it is a good option for consumers.

Keep an eye out for other consumer alerts, as well as opportunities to call on Equifax and our lawmakers to do more to remedy this situation, and prevent similar problems in the future.

Sincerely,

David Rossini
NMPIRG

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