Privacy watchdog investigates Equifax hack

OTTAWA— Canada’s privacy watchdog said Friday it has opened an investigation into the massive Equifax Inc. data breach after receiving several complaints and dozens of calls from concerned Canadians.

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada said in an announcement on its websitethat the credit-monitoring company will notify all affected Canadians in writing as soon as possible.

Equifax is used by many creditors to get reports on consumers’ credit histories, which include information such as social insurance numbers, credit card numbers and addresses.

Equifax said on Sept. 7 that it was the victim of a massive cyberattack that may have compromised the personal data of as many as 143 million Americans and a limited number of Canadian and U.K. residents.

Canada’s privacy watchdog said on Tuesday that it was “prioritizing” an examination into the hack.

The watchdog said Equifax would not call individuals and warned about potential scam calls from those trying to take advantage of the breach. It advised Canadians to hang up if anyone calls them claiming to be affiliated with Equifax — regardless of what the caller ID says.