![]() ![]() Satisfied with my answers, Equifax informed me that yes indeed I was Brian Krebs and that I could now manage my existing freeze with the company. Again, information that is not hard to find. Thus, the answer to the first three KBA questions asked was, “none of the above.” The final question asked for the name of our last mortgage company. The first three multiple-guess questions myEquifax asked were about loans or debts that I have never owed. One potential problem with relying on KBA questions to authenticate consumers online is that so much of the information needed to successfully guess the answers to those multiple-choice questions is now indexed or exposed by search engines, social networks and third-party services online - both criminal and commercial. Indeed, I have long assailed the KBA industry as creating a false sense of security that is easily bypassed by fraudsters. In general, the data being asked about in these KBA quizzes is culled from public records, meaning that this information likely is publicly available in some form - either digitally or in-person. It then asked a series of four security questions - so-called “knowledge-based authentication” or KBA questions designed to see if I could recall bits about my recent financial history. MyEquifax said it couldn’t verify that my email address belonged to the Brian Krebs at that SSN and DOB. This has been the reality for years, and was so well before Equifax announced its big 2017 breach. ![]() SSN and DOB data is widely available for sale in the cybercrime underground on almost all U.S. The next page asked me enter my SSN and date of birth, and to share a phone number (sharing was optional, so I didn’t). I chose an old email address that I knew wasn’t directly tied to my real-life identity. The portal asked me for an email address and suggested a longish, randomized password, which I accepted. Seeking to manage my own credit freeze at as I’d done in years past, I was steered toward creating an account at, which I was shocked to find I did not previously possess. ![]() But Equifax has changed a few things since then. In the wake of Equifax’s epic 2017 data breach impacting some 148 million Americans, many people did freeze their credit files at the big three in response. A freeze makes it much harder for identity thieves to open new lines of credit in your name. state can now freeze their credit files for free with Equifax and two other major bureaus ( Trans Union and Experian). Unfortunately, if you don’t already have an account at the credit bureau’s new myEquifax portal, it may be simple for identity thieves to lift an existing credit freeze at Equifax and bypass the PIN armed with little more than your, name, Social Security number and birthday.Ĭonsumers in every U.S. After we receive the request and verify your identity, you will receive confirmation.Most people who have frozen their credit files with Equifax have been issued a numeric Personal Identification Number (PIN) which is supposed to be required before a freeze can be lifted or thawed. Read more about acceptable documents here. If you are requesting to temporarily lift or permanently remove a security freeze via mail, you'll need to provide documents to validate your identity and address. Please download this form for instructions and mailing address. You'll also have the option to receive a one-time PIN by text message or answer questions based on information in your Equifax credit report for identity verification. You'll be required to give certain information to verify your identity. You can check the status of your security freeze through your myEquifax account as well. Online, by creating a myEquifax account.You can do this in one of the following ways: If you want to convert your security freeze to a lock, you'll need to permanently remove the freeze. You can have a security freeze on your Equifax credit report or a lock, but not both. ![]()
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