Equifax Data Breach Lawsuit

A major U.S. consumer credit reporting agency Equifax has recently suffered a data breach incident impacting approximately 143 million Americans. Names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses, and, in some cases, driver’s license numbers are just a short list of the information that was primarily accessed in this data breach.

If you think that your personal information may have been stolen in the Equifax data breach, or you have experienced identity theft or other action you think may be related to this data breach, then may be eligible for a compensation through an Equifax data breach lawsuit. Our experienced attorneys can help you determine if you are eligible for an Equifax data breach lawsuit.

Equifax is a global credit report agency. The company is one of the oldest of the three main U.S. credit agencies. Equifax collects and analyzes data on over 820 million customers and over 91 million businesses worldwide.

On July 29, 2017, Equifax discovered an unauthorized access to sensitive personal data of millions of its consumers. The company promptly informed law enforcement about the data breach and also hired an independent cybersecurity firm to conduct a thorough assessment of the incident.

On Sept. 7, 2017, the company publically announced the data breach incident, stating that it affected approximately 143 million U.S. consumers. Names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses, and, in some cases, driver’s license numbers are among the information that was primarily accessed in this data breach. Credit card numbers of about 209,000 consumers and some dispute documents with personal information of about 182,000 consumers were accessed as well.

Equifax created a website to help consumers determine if their personal information has been accessed. On that website, you can also sign up for a year of free credit monitoring and identity theft insurance. In addition, the company sent out direct mail notices to some of the affected customers and expanded their call center.

Because Equifax collects and manages data from millions of other entities, including credit card companies, banks and retailers who report on the credit activity of their customers to Equifax, you may not even be aware that you are one of the company’s customers.

Our experienced attorneys can help you determine if you are eligible for an Equifax data breach lawsuit. There is no cost or obligation if you contact us – we want to help you get the best legal representation available.

What is a data breach?

A data breach is an event when sensitive, protected and confidential personal data has been potentially accessed, stolen and used by an unauthorized person. Some of the data breach incidents involved personal healthcare documents, intellectual properties, trade secrets and personal identifiable data, such as SSNs, dates of births, drivers’ licenses, etc.

What is a data breach lawsuit?

When a company fails to adequately protect its consumers’ personal information, and fails to timely warn its consumers about the data breach, those affected may be able to file a class action lawsuit against the company.

Depending on the severity of the damages a person experienced after the data breach, an individual might be eligible for a substantial monetary compensation for the loss of the finances, privacy, reputation and credit score.

Over the past years, data breach incidents have only been increasing. But, fortunately, many data breach victims get compensation for the damages they experienced through multimillion-dollar data breach lawsuit settlements.

Anthem

Date of data breach: January 2015
Impact: 80 million consumers
Brief Details: Anthem is an American health insurance provider. During the breach, hackers obtained sensitive personal information, such as: names, dates of birth, social security numbers, and health-care ID numbers.
Settlement Amount: $115 million

Target

Date of data breach: 2013
Impact: over 100 million customers
Brief Details: Target is the second largest retail store chain in the U.S. The documents that were accessed during the breach included 42 million credit and debit card numbers, plus the names and addresses of 61 million customers.
Settlement Amount: $18.5M for states, $10M for consumers

Home Depot

Date of data breach: 2014
Impact: 50 million cardholders
Brief Details: Home depot is an American home improvement retail chain. During the breach, hackers compromised 40 million credit card numbers, and over 52 million email addresses.
Settlement Amount: $19.5 million to consumers, and $25 million to banks and credit card companies

Sony Interactive Entertainment: PlayStation

Date of data breach: 2011
Impact: 77 million user accounts
Brief Details: Sony Interactive Entertainment is a global leader in digital entertainment, that produces a world-famous game console Sony PlayStation. During the data breach of 2011 names, addresses and possibly credit card data of over 77 million users were compromised.
Settlement Amount: $15 million

Our experienced attorneys can help you identify the damages that you suffered after an Equifax data breach, and help you receive the compensation you deserve.

Our lawyers have over 100 years of combined experience litigating complex lawsuits. NastLaw attorneys fight for victims, so you can be assured that you will receive vigorous and aggressive representation.

We represent clients across the country, and our lawyers are recognized as some of the top in the country for their dedication to their clients and track record of results.