Elizabeth Warren: Equifax hid hackers’ theft of passport numbers, Equifax said no

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CyberWisdom Safe Harbor Commentary:
The nypost.com guides a revealing on US Senator Elizabeth Warren said on Wednesday that the number of online thieves who hacked the Equifax database in 2017 is an unknown number of passports – a hidden theft by credit reporting agencies.
But the running company opened fire on lawmakers and said it did not reveal the theft because it never happened.
The company said Warren may be the most outspoken Equifax critic.
The prospect of the hijacking of passport numbers disclosed in a report from a four-month investigation conducted at the office in Warren has drawn widespread concern throughout the country.
The hijacking of passport numbers is a serious matter, as these figures may allow hackers to sell information to terrorists who can then make fake U.S. passports.
Warren’s office will not say that there is evidence that the passport number was one of the 145.5 million adults stolen from Equifax last year – just the “passport” folder in the corporate database.
The report said: “Equifax did not disclose the fact that hackers get the consumer passport number.
Meanwhile, Equifax says there are no numbers in the folder.
An Equifax spokeswoman confirmed that the thief passed through this folder, but no passport information was “visited” – since there has never been any passport information.
In an interview with the Post, Equifax spokesman Meredith Griffanti said: “The easiest way to understand this is to have a passport-affixed field with no actual data.
Last year, credit reporting agencies found the database hacked in the country, stolen the credit card verification numbers and tax numbers of 147.5 million adults and shaken the country.
In a Senate hearing last fall, Warren deprived former Equifax chief executive Richard Smith of trying to maintain his passion for the company through her report.
It claimed that the cyber attack was worse than first thought – the company’s response has been poor.
Reuters reported this week that the Consumer Financial Protection Agency is relaxing its investigation of Equifax hackers.
Warren spokesman Lacey Rose said in a statement: “Equifax concealed the irregularities from the public for weeks and then confused consumers with information about their data being stolen and told Congress One thing, and is talking about something totally different.
“Equifax needs to talk directly to the Senate Banking Committee and the American people,” Rose added.
Read More…
Thanks for contacting us. We’ve received your submission. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) on Wednesday said cyber thieves who hacked Equifax’s database in 2017 made off with an unknown number of passport numbers — a theft the credit-reporting agency has kept hidden. But the embattled company shot right back at the lawmaker, saying it didn’t disclose the theft because it never happened. Warren, perhaps the most outspoken Equifax critic, is working from outdated information, the company said. The prospect of the passport number heist — revealed in a report that resulted from a four-month investigation by Warren’s office — got plenty of attention across the country. A passport-number heist is serious business because the data could allow hackers to sell the information to terrorists who could then create phony US passports. When pressed, Warren’s office would not say that it had proof that passport numbers were among the information on 145.5 million adults that was stolen from Equifax last year — just that the passport information folder in the company’s database was “accessed.” “Equifax failed to disclose the fact that the hackers gained access to consumers’ passport numbers,” the report said. Meanwhile, Equifax said there were no numbers in the folder…. Engaging post, Read More…
thumbnail courtesy of nypost.com

Equifax failed to offer basic security, senator says
Equifax (EFX) ignored warnings ahead of a massive security breach of data on more than 145 million Americans, then failed to quickly inform consumers, regulators and investors afterwards. That’s according to a report from Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, who’s calling for “real consequences” when credit reporting agencies “screw up.” The missive by Warren, a vocal critic of banks and other Wall Street entities, comes days after Reuters reported that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB, had put a probe of the Equifax breach “on ice.” Started by former CFPB Director Richard Cordray, the agency’s efforts regarding Equifax have derailed under its new head, Mick Mulvaney, the wire service reported. “Equifax set up a flawed system to prevent and mitigate data security problems, ignored numerous warnings of risks to sensitive data, failed to notify consumers, investors, and regulators about the breach in a timely fashion, took advantage of federal contracting loopholes and failed to protect IRS taxpayer data, and inadequately assisted consumers following the breach,” a four-month investigation found, according to a news release. “The American public deserves answers — and Mick Mulvaney needs to let the CFPB do its job and investigate Equifax’s massive data breach, not shut it down,” stated… Equifax failed to offer basic security, senator says

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