143 million Americans' personal data exposed in Equifax breach leading to increased identity theft risk
Summary
In 2017, Equifax suffered a major data breach that exposed the personal information of 143 million Americans, including names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses, and driver's license numbers. The breach was discovered in July 2017 but was not publicly disclosed at the time. The incident represents a significant breach of privacy and increases the risk of financial fraud and identity theft for affected individuals.
Incident Details
Domain
Privacy & Surveillance
Unauthorized collection, tracking, or exposure of personal data and private information.
Harm Types
Unauthorized Surveillance
AI-Powered Financial Fraud
Companies
Equifax
Who Was Affected
Age
mixed
Gender
mixed
Group
Economically Vulnerable
Sources
2Equifax's massive 2017 data breach keeps getting worse — 147 million total victims
Mar 1, 2018
Equifax data breach: 143 million Americans' credit histories exposed in hack
Sep 7, 2017
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