Equifax Data Breach Leak, Were You Affected??? And How To File A Claim
Yes, they do! I was shocked when I first found out and felt betrayed honestly. I know, weird, right? Well I did. Now I decided to do some research to figure out why they are selling my information when they are supposed to be keeping me safe. Which honestly I'm still a little upset about it due to the fact that they sale the very information that I want to keep safe the most. That's me personally though. I guess all the credit bureau's sale our credit scores, name, social, employment history (everything you see on your credit report) and to the company's that send us those pre-approved letters in the mail. Now, I've had some of those be a scam. So my question is, did they sale my personal information to this scammer to have the one thing that I wanted the bureau's to protect me from, happen? So I decided to do some more research and found out that just a few years back there was a law that passed that made it to where the four major credit bureau's are able to sell your personal information to any and all lenders. Not just that they can sell it to any lender here and across sea's. That doesn't make me feel safe in any way, shape or form. Now, there is a way to stop most of that from happening you can visit, www.optoutprescreen.com You can also take action by downloading software like Avast BreachGuard( Advanced Identity Theft Protection | Avast BreachGuard )or others like it. I personally have Avast Breachguard and when I first used and received an email from the first lender saying that they are removing me from there database and wouldn't sell my information any farther, I was in amazement.
I recently had my Identity stolen and taking every little step to protect myself keeps them farther from my children's socials and my family. I am OBSESSED with fixing my credit and reading absolutely everything that I can on Identity Theft, Identity Prevention, Credit repair and anything else you could think of in that area. I don't want anyone to ever feel the way that I did. So things that you can do to get your information back into your own hands:
Read my Blog about Avast and that Breachguard because it can do so much for you and that's coming from me using it personally Post | In my opinion (inmyopinionwithlove.com)
Think back WAY back to any old account that you might have open still like myspace, go and delete it. (I don't see, if its old and inactive, it being that hard to be hacked)
If you can't delete your account on an old facebook or shopping website just change all the information to fake information.
You could pay for a service like, "delete me" or "breachguard" and they will do it for you
search for yourself on websites like Spokeo.com, whitepages.com PeopleSearch.com, my life, radaris, intelius, beenverified and contact the data brokers for them and ask them to remove your information. (remember every site is going to be different but don't give up)
check with your cell phone company and see if you are listed online also
you can go to this website here, https://joindeleteme.com/help/diy-free-opt-out-guide/ and search up any data broker from deleteme without signing up with them if you would like to do it yourself.
So I did some more research and if you are a blogger or just post a lot about your family and yourself you have this option also.
-Use the domain look-up feature on WhoIs.com* to find out the webmaster’s information. If the website refuses to remove your info, then you can send a legal request to Google* and ask to have it removed
Some really good websites that have a lot of information on this kind of stuff and where I got some of my information is:
3. LifeLock.com
So there is a few different solutions and if you are like me and have your personal information everywhere on the internet and already have someone messing with your identity then you should read my other blogs about Identity Theft Personal Blog | In my opinion | Identity Theft protection (inmyopinionwithlove.com).
I will keep adding to this as I find more information. Like I said I am obsessed with this whole subject right now due to the fact that not even yesterday 6-30-21 did someone try to open up a bank account under my name but they also tried requesting my Experian Login information. This particular crime out of the crimes I believe to be one of the worst when it comes to not physically hurting you or violating you. I believe that because I have never felt so personally intruded in my life. If that's even a saying. Yes, I know if they have my information then they are probably reading these posts and honestly, I don't care because there is nothing they can or can't do that is going to take away who I am as a person. Not just that, yes my life is going to be a little bit harder with buying a house or getting a credit card. But, Guess what? I have my kids in my life, I'm alive, and I get to wake up everyday to seeing my daughter happy and healthy. I couldn't ask for anything more. So just remember be patient, be grateful for the things that you do have but make sure you do what you can to take care of everything that you need to because your Identity may not be who you are inside but it is a huge part of how you make yourself.
If you have any questions or any subject you would like me to research or become obsessed with like this, just email me at nikkimarie@inmyopinionwithlove.com and I would love to do what I can for you.
One last thing. If your Identity was stolen and you are trying to retrieve what you can and put the Immediate stop to the usage of your information then take these steps:
Freeze your credit with Experian, Equifax, and Transunion (and tell them to stop selling your information)
Delete as much information as you can on all the websites that you can find information on and if you start to get overwhelmed take a break, ask a boyfriend/girlfriend husband/wife to help, and just make sure in the end you get it finished.
Good Luck and like I keep saying, if you ever need anything I'm just a click away or a phone call away or whatever you want to do I'm here. Have a great rest of your day, night and life.
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