National Public Data Breach: How to Secure Your Identity and Freeze Your Credit
National Public Data breach 2023: 2.9 billion rows of personal data exposed. Equifax who? Here’s how to check if you’re affected, freeze your credit, and avoid identity theft. Spoiler: It’s like playing an unfunny game of cybersecurity whack-a-mole.
Hot Take:
Well, it looks like the Equifax breach of 2017 just got some serious competition. National Public Data (NPD) managed to make Equifax look like a small-time hacker’s lemonade stand with their colossal 2.9 billion rows of personal data being stolen. If identity theft were a sport, NPD just won the championship.
Key Points:
- National Public Data (NPD) breach exposed 2.9 billion rows of personal data, including Social Security numbers.
- NPD’s response has been lackluster, offering minimal guidance beyond monitoring accounts and initiating credit freezes.
- Credit freezes can prevent unauthorized creditors from viewing your credit file, potentially stopping identity theft.
- Freezing your credit is free and lasts for one year but needs separate action for Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.
- Additional precautions include checking financial statements, obtaining free credit reports, setting fraud alerts, and enabling two-factor authentication.
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