Major credit bureau TransUnion has suffered a data breach that exposed sensitive information belonging to 4.4 million customers, including names and Social Security numbers.
The data breach took place on July 28, meaning the sensitive information could have been sold and distributed throughout the dark web already. TransUnion is notifying people who may have been affected that their information could be exposed and sharing the actions the company is taking.
Consumer rights law firm Wolf Haldenstein issued an alert on the breach and encouraged those who have received a notice and spot unusual activity on their credit report to reach out.
A representative for TransUnion didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
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Two separate state filings shed more details on the situation. A court filing in Maine shows that TransUnion acknowledged unauthorized access from a third-party application that stored personal customer data. While the notice to consumers says that no credit information was accessed, “limited personal information” was exposed. However, another filing from Texas states that names of individuals, Social Security numbers, and birthdates were exposed in the breach.
According to the letter sent to people identified within the breach, TransUnion is offering 24 months of credit monitoring services for free.
Even if you haven’t received a notice, if you’ve experienced unusual activity on your credit report, you can always freeze your credit for free, enable two-factor authentication or add a security key to your accounts.
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