Keep in mind that these free services may not be as comprehensive as the credit monitoring offered by the Equifax settlement. Mint, Credit Journey and MyCredit Guide, for example, only monitor your TransUnion credit report, rather than all three credit bureaus.
Full Answer
Where can I find out more about the Equifax settlement?
Learn more at the FTC’s official site for information: ftc.gov/Equifax. Remember that you don’t have to pay for credit monitoring as part of this settlement, and nobody will call, text, or email out of the blue to ask you for your credit card or bank account numbers, or to “help” you get your free credit monitoring.
Did you get an email about free credit monitoring through Equifax?
Lots of people recently got an email or letter about free credit monitoring through the Equifax settlement. That’s because the settlement with Equifax was just approved by a court. So now, if you signed up for credit monitoring as part of that settlement, you can take a few steps to switch it on. The email or letter tells you how.
How much did you pay for the Equifax breach?
As a result, consumers who were affected by the breach had the option of signing up for either up to $125 or free credit monitoring at all three of the largest credit reporting firms: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. (Consumers who sought cash payments should visit the settlement claims administrator’s website for updates, Equifax told CNBC.)
Do I have to pay for credit monitoring with the settlement?
Remember that you don’t have to pay for credit monitoring as part of this settlement, and nobody will call, text, or email out of the blue to ask you for your credit card or bank account numbers, or to “help” you get your free credit monitoring. Anyone who does is a scammer, so please tell the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
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What is going on with the Equifax settlement?
Court Approves Equifax Breach Settlement: Money for Some, Free Credit Monitoring for All. Equifax will pay up to $425 million in restitution to those directly impacted by the massive data breach of the credit bureau in 2017. A federal court gave final approval to the class-action lawsuit settlement in mid-January.
How do I know if I qualify for Equifax settlement?
To be eligible, your claim for Out-of-Pocket Losses or Time Spent must occur between January 23, 2020 and January 22, 2024 (the “Extended Claims Period”). During the Extended Claims Period, impacted class members may submit claim(s) for cash reimbursement.
Is the minted settlement Legitimate?
U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria approved the settlement on Dec. 17, 2021, ending class action litigation filed on behalf of Minted customers by MoginRubin LLP and the Schack Law Group under the California Consumer Privacy Act, commonly called the CCPA.
Is there a class action lawsuit against Equifax?
In 2017, hackers broke into Equifax in a breach that exposed the financial information of 147 million Americans. A federal court in 2020 approved a $380 million settlement of class actions lawsuits, with no finding or judgment of wrongdoing made.
How much will each person get from Equifax settlement?
Under the settlement terms, Equifax agreed to set up a fund to provide free credit monitoring and identity theft protection to consumers, as well as provide cash payments to people affected by the breach—up to $20,000 per person.
Has anyone received money from Equifax settlement?
After a data breach in 2017 exposed personal data of more than 147 million consumers, including in some cases Social Security and driver's license numbers, credit bureau Equifax agreed to pay hundreds of millions in compensation to help affected consumers.
How much will I get from minted settlement?
The proposed settlement establishes a non-reversionary $5 million fund that will provide relief for participating class members. Class members should receive an estimated $43 payment, 2 years of credit monitoring, and personal identity restoration services.
How much is the minted settlement payout?
$5 millionv. Minted, Inc. The settlement will provide $5 million to provide compensation and other benefits for Minted, Inc. users who were affected by a data breach that occurred on or about May 6, 2020 and resulted in the theft of users' personal identifying information.
How much is the minted settlement per person?
$43 per personIn the motion for approval, the Parties estimate that they expect participating class members to receive an estimated cash payment of $43 per person, as well as two years of credit monitoring services, valued at approximately $10 per month per person.
Where is my free credit monitoring from Equifax?
All U.S. consumers can now get 7 free Equifax credit reports per year through 2026 by visiting www.annualcreditreport.com.
How do I know if my Equifax breach is affected?
If you want to check whether your data was exposed, the FTC and official settlement site have an online tool you can use to check if you were part of the Equifax breach. You'll need to enter your last name and last six digits of your Social Security number to see if your data was part of the hack.
Does Equifax sell your information?
We use and sell personal data to nonaffiliated third parties for the following commercial purposes: Consumer credit reporting. Some of our affiliates collect, use, and sell personal data when acting as a consumer reporting agency, as this activity is regulated by the FCRA.
How Much Will Indiana residents get from the Equifax settlement?
approximately $79The Indiana Attorney General will start sending settlement payments on Wednesday to Hoosiers whose data was leaked in a 2017 Equifax breach. More than 236,000 past and current Indiana residents will get approximately $79 as part of a settlement that Indiana reached with the credit company.
How much will I get from Indiana Equifax settlement?
“Each person who filed an eligible claim for restitution at IndianaEquifaxClaims.com will receive approximately $79," a statement from the Attorney General's Office said. "The Office will begin distributing digital and check payments on March 31.
What is the Indiana Equifax settlement?
As part of the settlement, Equifax agreed to pay $19.5 million to the State of Indiana. That money is being directed to consumer restitution payments and costs associated with the settlement. If your personal information was impacted in the data breach, you are eligible for a consumer restitution payment.
What is the difference between my Equifax and Equifax?
Highlights: With a free myEquifax account, you can receive free Equifax credit reports, place a security freeze, fraud alert or submit a dispute. A myEquifax account is FREE, and for anyone to easily view and monitor their Equifax credit report and needs credit report assistance.
If you signed up for the Equifax Breach Settlement, activate your benefit online
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Who's a Settlement Class Member?
A settlement class member of the Equifax breach is any one of the 147 million people impacted by the breach—i.e., who had their information stolen. If you are unsure of your status, the settlement administrator has a tool to check your status as a class member on the Equifax Data Breach Settlement website.
Who's an Eligible Claimant?
If you submitted a claim and opted for free Credit Monitoring Services during the Initial Claims Period, which ended Jan. 22, 2020, you are eligible for free credit monitoring for four years, as well as other benefits and coverage that will be explained to you when you sign up for your membership.
How to Sign Up for Free Credit Monitoring
By Feb. 25, 2022, all valid claimants will receive a letter or email from the settlement administrator that will include an activation code. 7 You will be instructed to go to the Experian IdentityWorks website and enter your activation code by June 27, 2022 to begin your free four-year membership. 2
How to Avoid a Scam
For every legitimate offer of free services, there are likely hundreds of scams. The Equifax settlement will be no different. Keep the following things in mind when evaluating any communications you receive: 3
Extended Claims Period
Although the deadline for settlement class members to file an Initial Claims Period claim passed on Jan. 22, 2020, class members may submit reimbursement claims for Out of Pocket Expenses and/or Time Spent for the Extended Claims Period (Jan. 23, 2020 through Jan. 22, 2024. 7
Free Identity Restoration Services
If you are a settlement class member, you are entitled to at least 7 years of free assisted identity restoration services beginning Jan. 11, 2022, to help you remedy the effects of identity theft and fraud. 7
The Equifax settlement options
The Equifax settlement provides two compensation options for everyone affected: 10 years of free credit monitoring or a cash payout of up to $125.
Should you choose cash or credit monitoring?
Here's the problem with taking the cash -- the fund for this alternative reimbursement only has $31 million available. That money will be divided between everyone who chooses the cash payout, which means if too many people choose this option, the payout amounts will be reduced.
Additional compensation
Whether you take the cash or credit monitoring, the settlement also allows you to claim compensation for time spent or unreimbursed out-of-pocket losses you suffered that can be traced back to the data breach.
How to file a claim
The settlement administrator has created an Equifax data breach settlement site where you can read more about it and file your claim.
Getting the most value from the Equifax settlement
When news of the Equifax settlement first broke, it wasn't clear that the cash settlements could be reduced, so there was plenty of talk about "claiming your $125". Based on the number of people who have already filed, the cash payout won't amount to much.
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When will Equifax send credit monitoring codes?
The deadline for this settlement process is January 22, 2020, so don’t expect to receive your free monitoring for a few months yet. In fact, Equifax will not send activation codes for credit monitoring until a federal judge approves the settlement. Equifax still denies any wrongdoing.
How many years of credit monitoring does Equifax offer?
population has used Equifax’s services in one form or another, many of us are eligible for ten free years of credit monitoring from all three bureaus.
What happened to Equifax?
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you probably heard that one of the biggest credit agencies in the world, Equifax, had a massive data breach in May 2017. Hackers exposed social security numbers and other sensitive data, affecting 147 million consumers. Not only that, but Equifax failed to notice the breach until late July, and didn’t notify the public until September of that year. Naturally, a huge Federal Trade Commission lawsuit and settlement ensued, and since a large percentage of the U.S. population has used Equifax’s services in one form or another, many of us are eligible for ten free years of credit monitoring from all three bureaus.
How to contact the FTC about the $125 settlement?
Contact us at (800)-810-0989. 2 minute read. News. credit. Updated on: August 6th, 2019. This post was updated to reflect the FTC’s clarification that consumers will no longer receive the $125 cash settlement.
Who is the company that is responsible for the Equifax breach?
Go to the Equifax Breach Settlement This website is run by JND, the company administrating the settlement, rather than Equifax themselves, thankfully.
Can you file a separate claim for time spent because of a breach?
This step requires additional documentation, and the payout will probably be very small, so most people will probably skip it.