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General Discussion => Share Your Badassity => Topic started by: jnw on July 26, 2019, 01:17:18 PM

Title: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: jnw on July 26, 2019, 01:17:18 PM
Turns out my personal info at Equifax was compromised and well I just filed a claim for a $125 settlement payment. I decided I don't need 10 years of creditor monitoring from them because I am already using Credit Karma for free.

Anyone impacted can get 10 years free credit monitoring or $125.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/26/us/equifax-breach-settlement-questions-answered-trnd/index.html

There is a link in above CNN article which lets you see if you were impacted, and you can file a claim there if so.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: brooklynmoney on July 26, 2019, 01:31:58 PM
Thanks! Just got $125
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: terran on July 26, 2019, 01:59:13 PM
Thanks!
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Samuel on July 26, 2019, 02:02:14 PM
Conflicting emotions. My information was not compromised, but now I don't get $125...
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: HPstache on July 26, 2019, 02:05:25 PM
Yeah, I qualify as well, AFAIK there was no real issues that sprang up due to my compromised info.  I plan on applying for the $125.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: JLee on July 26, 2019, 02:41:58 PM
My information was compromised, but I don't have credit monitoring and am not going to lie about it to get $125 either, so here I am.

I suppose I could sign up for it...
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: solon on July 26, 2019, 02:45:12 PM
My information was compromised, but I don't have credit monitoring and am not going to lie about it to get $125 either, so here I am.

I suppose I could sign up for it...

Are you kidding? Get a free credit report 3 times a year from www.annualcreditreport.com. Boom, credit monitoring!
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: JLee on July 26, 2019, 02:46:48 PM
My information was compromised, but I don't have credit monitoring and am not going to lie about it to get $125 either, so here I am.

I suppose I could sign up for it...

Are you kidding? Get a free credit report 3 times a year from www.annualcreditreport.com. Boom, credit monitoring!

LOL. Well, I guess you're not wrong...
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Frankies Girl on July 26, 2019, 02:47:22 PM
My information was compromised, but I don't have credit monitoring and am not going to lie about it to get $125 either, so here I am.

I suppose I could sign up for it...

@JLee  - You don't have to lie about having credit monitoring. They give you the option to claim a one time $125 if you were compromised, and you're on your own as far as finding credit monitoring (either have it already, or DIY or don't care) OR you can have them cover your monitoring for the next X years. You don't have to have ANY credit monitoring in place or are forced to get it if you don't want it.

The payment is an "oops, we screwed up. Here's money to cover the basic costs to DIY monitoring or go find a company yourself" type of thing.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: JLee on July 26, 2019, 02:54:55 PM
My information was compromised, but I don't have credit monitoring and am not going to lie about it to get $125 either, so here I am.

I suppose I could sign up for it...

@JLee  - You don't have to lie about having credit monitoring. They give you the option to claim a one time $125 if you were compromised, and you're on your own as far as finding credit monitoring (either have it already, or DIY or don't care) OR you can have them cover your monitoring for the next X years. You don't have to have ANY credit monitoring in place or are forced to get it if you don't want it.

The payment is an "oops, we screwed up. Here's money to cover the basic costs to DIY monitoring or go find a company yourself" type of thing.

This is what I see:

(https://i.imgur.com/RK4ALzx.png)
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Zamboni on July 26, 2019, 03:00:15 PM
Thank you for posting this!

I get regularly reporting of my credit score via both some credit cards and my credit union . . . so I am not conflicted at all about considering that monitoring and asking for the $125.

Also, someone did indeed try to open an account in my name after the breach, and they had everything they needed including my social security number and maiden name. Not sure why the CC company decided to do dual authentication and contact me separately to confirm except maybe an address where they wanted the card sent wasn't matching record. So now I have credit freezes at all of the bureaus, which honestly is a slight pain but it's worth the piece of mind. I asked to be compensated for the 3 hours it took me to set up all those freezes as well.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Frankies Girl on July 26, 2019, 03:14:19 PM
My information was compromised, but I don't have credit monitoring and am not going to lie about it to get $125 either, so here I am.

I suppose I could sign up for it...

@JLee  - You don't have to lie about having credit monitoring. They give you the option to claim a one time $125 if you were compromised, and you're on your own as far as finding credit monitoring (either have it already, or DIY or don't care) OR you can have them cover your monitoring for the next X years. You don't have to have ANY credit monitoring in place or are forced to get it if you don't want it.

The payment is an "oops, we screwed up. Here's money to cover the basic costs to DIY monitoring or go find a company yourself" type of thing.

This is what I see:

(https://i.imgur.com/RK4ALzx.png)

Right. They're officially covering their ass by saying "you need to monitor YOUR credit if you don't want us to do it." But certifying that you're monitoring your credit is literally just you having free credit karma, or DIY by pulling your reports, or putting a freeze on your credit, or similar. Which you know to do now. So you're not going to be lying about having monitoring if you actually monitor your credit going forward.


But please do claim your money. They need the cost of doing business part of securing their info to really hurt them so they do a better job going forward.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: JLee on July 26, 2019, 03:19:21 PM
My information was compromised, but I don't have credit monitoring and am not going to lie about it to get $125 either, so here I am.

I suppose I could sign up for it...

@JLee  - You don't have to lie about having credit monitoring. They give you the option to claim a one time $125 if you were compromised, and you're on your own as far as finding credit monitoring (either have it already, or DIY or don't care) OR you can have them cover your monitoring for the next X years. You don't have to have ANY credit monitoring in place or are forced to get it if you don't want it.

The payment is an "oops, we screwed up. Here's money to cover the basic costs to DIY monitoring or go find a company yourself" type of thing.

This is what I see:


Right. They're officially covering their ass by saying "you need to monitor YOUR credit if you don't want us to do it." But certifying that you're monitoring your credit is literally just you having free credit karma, or DIY by pulling your reports, or putting a freeze on your credit, or similar. Which you know to do now. So you're not going to be lying about having monitoring if you actually monitor your credit going forward.


But please do claim your money. They need the cost of doing business part of securing their info to really hurt them so they do a better job going forward.

That is a fair point.  Just kicked in the claim.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Omy on July 26, 2019, 03:25:02 PM
PTF
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Another Reader on July 26, 2019, 03:38:30 PM
Why is it I think they are collecting a database to which they can market services?

Sadly, I qualify, but so far, all the problems I have had have been with existing credit card accounts.  I do have Credit Karma and have for years.  So send me the money!
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Car Jack on July 26, 2019, 08:10:43 PM
Do you check credit karma?  You're monitoring your credit.
Do you look at credit card accounts to see who the authorized users are?  You're monitoring your credit.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: nancy33 on July 26, 2019, 11:43:53 PM
Thank you! Husband and I both qualify. Non stop identity theft issues too. Maybe it is their fault!
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: rosarugosa on July 27, 2019, 05:13:03 AM
Thanks for posting this.  I just filed claims for DH and me.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Another Reader on July 27, 2019, 07:03:47 AM
Don't count on that $125.  It's based on a claimant class size of 250,000.  If 2,500,000 people apply, everyone will get $12.50.  There is more money allocated for those that can prove damage, but it's not a lot if you have been seriously damaged.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: FIREball567 on July 27, 2019, 02:05:36 PM
Did anyone upload any info to Equifax when trying to claim the $125?


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Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Peach on July 28, 2019, 08:13:55 AM
My information was compromised too, but I'm going with the credit monitoring.  The main reasons I chose this was because: (1) they provide up to $1 million dollars in insurance covering costs related to identity theft or fraud, and (2) they use dark web monitoring.

More information can be found here: https://www.equifaxbreachsettlement.com/faq (https://www.equifaxbreachsettlement.com/faq)
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: jtraggie99 on July 29, 2019, 07:35:50 AM
You guys realize you're unlikely to ever see anything close to $125 right?  I mean my info was compromised and I submitted my claim as well, but do the math.  The more people that claim the money the less everyone will get.  And at this point this info is spreading like wildfire, social media, local news, national news, etc.

https://www.theverge.com/2019/7/26/8932398/equifax-settlement-125-claim-wont-get-money-alternative-reimbursement-compensation (https://www.theverge.com/2019/7/26/8932398/equifax-settlement-125-claim-wont-get-money-alternative-reimbursement-compensation)
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Candace on July 29, 2019, 07:54:23 AM
My information was compromised too, but I'm going with the credit monitoring.  The main reasons I chose this was because: (1) they provide up to $1 million dollars in insurance covering costs related to identity theft or fraud, and (2) they use dark web monitoring.

More information can be found here: https://www.equifaxbreachsettlement.com/faq (https://www.equifaxbreachsettlement.com/faq)
I did this too. I don't know if it was the "right" decision, but it makes me feel good to know the above. I check my credit card statements every month, but I just feel better knowing about the insurance. I guess it just made me feel better than $125, in the end. Plus, as someone else pointed out, the $125 figure is an estimate. Claimants might get a lot less if more people than expected go through the extremely easy process of making a claim.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: MasterStache on July 29, 2019, 08:16:35 AM
DW and I were both compromised. We monitor our credit very closely  and this has been on our radar for quite some time. Like others, I doubt we'll get much but spent a couple minutes filling out form anyways.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: rubybeth on July 29, 2019, 08:29:45 AM
Keep in mind there are limited funds for this. It might be "up to $125" but if more people claim this than there are funds, the amount you'll get will go down. I did file but I'm not super hopeful that I'll actually get $125.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: jtraggie99 on July 29, 2019, 08:43:22 AM
Keep in mind there are limited funds for this. It might be "up to $125" but if more people claim this than there are funds, the amount you'll get will go down. I did file but I'm not super hopeful that I'll actually get $125.

It's pretty crazy man.  147 million people affected but only enough money for about 248,000 to get the full $125.  Some penalty for Equifax.  And the CEO gets pushed out and is handed almost 20 million as he heads out the door...
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: MilesTeg on July 31, 2019, 02:19:38 PM
Yet another failure to hold corporations accountable. Massive data breach, slap on the wrist punishment.

$125? Not happening, the amount of money set aside is pennies per affected person.
Free credit monitoring for a few years? What a joke. The information leaked will always be out there now (and is now in the hands of anyone willing to pay for it), and at any point in the future can be used to steal your identity. Further, where's the compensation for all the time and expense necessary to fix things once your identity is stolen?

This sort of utter, catastrophic failure should have real consequences.

How flimsy a slap will Capital One get?
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Alternatepriorities on July 31, 2019, 02:46:24 PM
Yet another failure to hold corporations accountable. Massive data breach, slap on the wrist punishment.

$125? Not happening, the amount of money set aside is pennies per affected person.
Free credit monitoring for a few years? What a joke. The information leaked will always be out there now (and is now in the hands of anyone willing to pay for it), and at any point in the future can be used to steal your identity. Further, where's the compensation for all the time and expense necessary to fix things once your identity is stolen?

This sort of utter, catastrophic failure should have real consequences.

+1

This settlement has a nasty stench to it. I didn't realize how limited the funds were for the $125, with that in mind I'd guess the monitoring and insurance is probably work more to me. I believe everyone in a country where peoples data was breached should be getting a payment to cover the time we spent or (at least should have) to lock down our credit AND free credit monitoring for those whose data was lost. I spent in excess of 10 hours researching and monitoring my credit as direct result of Equifax's failure making $125 less than $12.50 an hour.

I don't think a penalty large enough to bankrupt Equifax would be overkill. Something that would convey the message to companies that this stuff matters.

Since I can't make that happen I chose to freeze my credit with Equifax and not with Transunion or Experian. If enough people did so, banks and other clients might eventually decide that relying on Equifax wasn't worth it and they would go under. That's probably just a dream though...

Update: In addition to the credit monitoring or $125 it turns out you can file a claim for your time at $25/hr (up to 10 hours) without supporting documents. I'm not sure what the actual chance of being paid is...
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: index on July 31, 2019, 09:23:21 PM
I had my identity stolen and 4k worth of Verizon iPhone 10s taken out in my name.  I requested 16 hrs to compensate me.  I had to submit the police report and FTC documentation.  I guess I'll see what happens...
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: frugalnacho on August 01, 2019, 11:51:49 AM
$700M settlement, but only $31M is set aside for repayment.  That $31M will be divided up between all claimants.   That's only enough to pay the full $125 for 248,000 claims.  Millions have already filed claims though.  I'm not sure why there are all the articles and comments about how you "probably" won't get the full claim - it's already a mathematical certainty no one is going to get that full amount, or anywhere even close to that amount.  By the time it's all said and done we are all getting substantially less, my guess would be like $10 or less.  The FTC is as bad at projections and math as equifax is at keeping our data secure. 
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: 2Birds1Stone on August 01, 2019, 12:11:31 PM
You will get between $1-5, I would take the credit monitoring.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Alternatepriorities on August 01, 2019, 12:24:52 PM
You will get between $1-5, I would take the credit monitoring.

Yeah it looks like even the FTC is admitting that openly now:
https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/ftc-warns-cash-option-may-205308527.html
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: frugalnacho on August 01, 2019, 02:20:30 PM
Even that article says it's "unlikely".  It's not "unlikely", it's an absolute certainty already unless they alter the terms!  I don't have a source, but I've read that there has already been in excess of a million claims, and it's open for several more months.  With 147M eligible people there is certain to be even more claims.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: FIREball567 on August 01, 2019, 03:02:49 PM
Think I'll just take the 7 years of credit monitoring since it doesn't look like we're getting the full $125. When Target had their breach, they offered free credit monitoring for 2 years. Does anyone know if this is the same?


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Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: Alternatepriorities on August 01, 2019, 04:09:13 PM
Even that article says it's "unlikely".  It's not "unlikely", it's an absolute certainty already unless they alter the terms!  I don't have a source, but I've read that there has already been in excess of a million claims, and it's open for several more months.  With 147M eligible people there is certain to be even more claims.

Fair point. With 147M people harmed the total settlement $750M is $5 per victim. Even if the whole settlement were paid out and only 10% of victims bothered to file a claim that's $50. That's why I went with the monitoring an insurance...
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: frugalnacho on August 01, 2019, 09:24:56 PM
Even that article says it's "unlikely".  It's not "unlikely", it's an absolute certainty already unless they alter the terms!  I don't have a source, but I've read that there has already been in excess of a million claims, and it's open for several more months.  With 147M eligible people there is certain to be even more claims.

Fair point. With 147M people harmed the total settlement $750M is $5 per victim. Even if the whole settlement were paid out and only 10% of victims bothered to file a claim that's $50. That's why I went with the monitoring an insurance...

Only $31M of the settlement is earmarked to pay these claims, so if everyone that was affected claims it the pay out will be $0.21 per person.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: the_fixer on August 02, 2019, 07:36:30 PM
Wish I had waited a little longer bit the wife and I are in the list but I sign up for the $125 but wish I had gone for the monitoring instead since it will likely be a minor amount paid out.

Even the $125 was an insult considering the scope and potential for damage.

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Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: JLee on August 03, 2019, 10:34:35 AM
Wish I had waited a little longer bit the wife and I are in the list but I sign up for the $125 but wish I had gone for the monitoring instead since it will likely be a minor amount paid out.

Even the $125 was an insult considering the scope and potential for damage.

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https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/02/tech/equifax-check-claim-change/index.html

Quote
(CNN)Equifax data breach victims who filed for a $125 settlement check will have an opportunity to change their selection and opt for free credit monitoring instead. The move follows a torrent of consumer requests for cash payments from the embattled credit company.

The Federal Trade Commission said Thursday consumers who have already requested their checks — which are meant as subsidies for outside credit monitoring services — will soon be contacted by the third party administrator handling Equifax settlement claims. The administrator will provide consumers with the chance to switch benefits, the FTC said.
Regulators this week have been pleading with consumers to take the offer of free credit monitoring over the cash subsidy, due to an "overwhelming" amount of interest in a limited pool of funds earmarked for direct monetary relief.
Title: Re: Getting $125 from Equifax
Post by: the_fixer on August 04, 2019, 07:31:21 AM
Thanks for posting that. I also received it in my news feed on my phone so must be a hot topic.



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