Equifax to pay up to $700M

What consumers should expect from agreement Settlement over data breach includes $1.5M for Nevada

Equifax’s $700 million settlement with the U.S. government over a massive 2017 data breach includes up to $425 million for consumers.

Here is what you need to know about the breach and what actions you can take:

How did the hackers break in?

According to the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, a server hosting Equifax’s online dispute portal was running software with a known weak spot. The hackers, who have not been identified, jumped through the opening to reach databases containing consumers’ personal information. The attack went unnoticed People in the U.S. who had their Social Security numbers and similar information exposed by the data breach

Equifax would pay Nevada nearly $1.5 million for a 2017 data breach, according to a pending class-action settlement.

The data breach exposed Social Security numbers and other private information of nearly 150 million people, including about 1.2 million Nevadans.

The settlement with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Trade Commission, 48 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico has yet to be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. It includes $425 million of monetary relief for consumers, as well as a $100 million civil penalty.

“When consumers entrust

their personal information to companies, that public trust comes with a responsibility to keep that data safe,” Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford said in a statement. The settlement “will require Equifax to create safeguards against largescale attacks in the future.”

The breach was one of the largest evertothreatenprivateinformation. Equifax, a consumer reporting agency based in Atlanta, did not detect the attack for more than six weeks. The compromised data included Social Security numbers, birthdates, addresses, driver’s license numbers, credit card numbers and, in some cases, data from passports.

All impacted consumers would

be eligible to receive at least 10 years of free credit monitoring and at least seven years of free identity restoration services. In addition, all U.S. consumers would be able to request up to six free copies of their Equifax credit report during any 12-month period starting Dec. 31 and extending seven years.

If consumers choose not to enroll in the free credit-monitoring product available through the settlement, they may seek up to $125 as a reimbursement for the cost of such a product. Consumers must submit a claim in order to receive free credit monitoring or cash reimbursements.

“Companies that profit from personal information have an extra responsibility to protect and securethatdata,”saidftcchairman Joe Simons. “Equifax failed to take basic steps that may have prevented

the breach that affected approximately 147 million consumers. This settlement requires that the company take steps to improve its data security going forward and will ensure that consumers harmed by this breach can receive help protecting themselves from identity theft and fraud.”

Affected consumers may also be eligible to receive money by filing one or more claims for money spent purchasing credit monitoring or identity theft protection after the breach, as well as other costs, including freezing or unfreezing credit reports at any consumer reporting agency.

Sharesofequifaxinc.rose50 cents, or 0.36 percent, to close at $137.80 Monday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.