Page 2 The Skanner September 20, 2017
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Opinion
What You Should Know about the Equifax Data Breach
R
ecord-breaking,
back-
to-back hurricanes in
Houston and Florida
brought unprecedent-
ed winds and rains affecting
millions of Americans. Yet
another storm just as bru-
tal, but financial in nature, is
raging and affects at least 143
million Americans: that’s the
Equifax data breach that took
place from mid-May to July of
this year.
On July 29, Equifax, one of
the three major credit report-
ing corporations, discovered
that unauthorized data access
had occurred. Yet it was not
until September 7 when the
multi-national data breach
was announced publicly. This
massive cybersecurity breach
includes federal income tax
records, as well as employee
records for government em-
ployees and those of Fortune
500 firms. Even recipients of
major government programs
like Medicare, Medicaid, and
Social Security are affected.
For consumers, the person-
al information exposed to
fraud and identity theft could
mean a lifetime of closely
monitoring and defending
personal data to fight theft,
fines and more. For business-
es, questions will emerge as
to whether millions of credit
accounts were fraudulent-
ly opened and additionally
whether they will be held par-
tially responsible for its per-
Charlene
Crowell
NNPA
Columnist
petuation.
In reaction to this cyber-
crime, a surge of federal class
action lawsuits are going after
Equifax. As many as 50 have
been filed in at least 14 states
and the District of Columbia
as of September 12. The Fed-
eral Bureau of Investigation
“
es are all in jeopardy. Equifax
also knew that an estimated
209,000 credit card holders
and some 182,000 consumers
in the U.S. who have a dispute
on file with a creditor also had
comprised PII.
“This hack into sensitive
information compiled and
maintained by Equifax is one
of the largest data breaches in
our nation’s history and some-
one has to be held account-
able,” said Congresswoman
Maxine Waters, the Ranking
Member of the House Finan-
cial Services Committee in an
article for “Business Insider.”
The scope and scale of this breach
appears to make it one of the larg-
est on record
is reportedly examining what
went wrong from a criminal
perspective. On the civil side
of the law, the Consumer Fi-
nancial Protection Bureau
(CFPB) is beginning its own
independent investigation.
Now a growing number of
bipartisan inquiries from
Capitol Hill are demanding to
know why these breaches of
personally identifiable infor-
mation (PII) came about, what
actions Equifax took, and
what the global firm intends
to do on behalf of consumers
whose names, birth dates,
addresses, Social Security
numbers and drivers’ licens-
“Given the important role
credit scores play in the lives
and financial futures of hard-
working Americans, Con-
gress must diligently examine
the way our credit reporting
agencies are operating and
impose additional statutory
and regulatory reforms to
protect the integrity of the
country’s credit reporting
system,” Waters continued.
In a September 11 letter to
Richard F. Smith, Equifax’s
Chairman and Chief Exec-
utive Office, the Chair and
Ranking Member of the Sen-
ate Finance Committee went
further to pose a series of
questions to be answered by
Sept. 26. Issues raised in the
letter include binding arbi-
tration clauses that deny af-
fected consumers the right
of class action lawsuits, the
firm’s security systems and
controls, how consumers can
expect to be officially notified,
and what, if any, protections
Equifax will offer to affected
consumers.
“The scope and scale of this
breach appears to make it one
of the largest on record, and
the sensitivity of the informa-
tion compromised may make
it the most costly to consum-
ers,” wrote Senators Orrin
Hatch, Senate Finance Chair
and Ron Wyden, the commit-
tee’s Ranking Member.
Chi Chi Wu of the National
Consumer Law Center said,
“A security freeze is the most
effective measure against
“new account” identity theft,
because it stops thieves from
using the consumer’s stolen
information.”
To follow Wu’s advice, con-
sumers will need to contact
all three of the major credit
reporting bureaus and re-
quest that no new accounts be
opened in their names. Once
requested, consumers will
not be able to easily apply for
new credit accounts or apply
for a loan.
Read the rest of this commentary at
TheSkanner.com
Trump Can’t Deport the ‘Dreamers’ Without a Fight
O
ur 45th President swept
into office with a foun-
dation of racist claims.
First, the very basis of
his political participation was
his false assertion (for which
he has never apologized) that
President Barack Obama was
not born in the United States.
Using the “birther” move-
ment as a basis, “45” signaled
to every random racist out
there that he was willing to ig-
nore truth to attack President
Obama.
Then, he used horrible
rhetoric to describe Mexican
people as violent rapist, fol-
lowed by his usual “and some
of them are very nice.” He
suggested that a federal judge
could not do his job because he
was of Mexican descent. And
much of his campaign was
focused on deporting people.
The pace of deportations has
increased since he took office.
Now, he has snatched sta-
bility away from a group of
young people called “dream-
ers” have built.
These young folks were
brought to these United
States by parents who came
to this country illegally. In le-
gal limbo and unable to apply
for jobs or college admission,
many of these young people
lived in the shadows, working
under the table or not at all,
piecing together livelihoods
Julianne
Malveaux
NNPA
Columnist
as best they could.
President Barack Obama
grappled with this issue and,
through executive order (be-
cause Congress would not
act), created the Deferred Ac-
“
through to attain “dreamer”
status. They have to pay al-
most $500 every two years
and fill out more than a doz-
en forms to qualify, includ-
ing forms that detail income,
expenses and assets. They
must have a work permit. If
they move, they have to in-
form the U.S. Customs and
Immigration Service. And
they can’t leave the country
without permission, which is
only sparingly granted, and
usually only for educational
While President Obama did a
great thing by creating DACA, the
program does not go far enough
tion for Childhood Arrivals
(DACA) program. Attorneys
general in some states have
described the program as il-
legal and have threatened to
sue for its elimination. At-
torney General J. Beauregard
Sessions has said he would
not defend the program, be-
cause President Obama “over-
reached” in establishing it.
So, the camera-hogging “45”
actually allowed Beauregard
(who he very recently dissed)
to announce that DACA will
end, although there is a “grace
period” of six months.
I don’t think many under-
stand how many hoops child-
hood arrivals must jump
purposes. Requests to visit
relatives are rarely granted
and, even when permission
is granted, there is no guar-
antee that “dreamers” will be
allowed back into the country.
So, while President Obama
did a great thing by creating
DACA, the program does not
go far enough. “Dreamers” do
not have the same privileges
that other citizens have, and
they have more responsibili-
ties. Their status can also be
revoked, if they have had any
interactions with “law en-
forcement” officers, and we
all know how that one goes.
While it appears that “45”
has given dreamers some
hope by delaying enforce-
ment of DACA elimination for
six months, and by making
nice with Democratic leaders,
the drama of dangling possi-
bilities in front of folks and
then snatching them away
is typical “45” showmanship
and irrationality. The fact
that Sarah Huckabee Sand-
ers, the White House parrot,
raised Black unemployment
in a White House press con-
ference is further evidence of
this administration’s racism.
Has there been any other time
when these people have men-
tioned Black unemployment?
Part of the reason “45” is re-
voking DACA has to do with
his anti-Mexican, anti-immi-
grant, racist biases. But part
has to do with his adminis-
tration’s attempt to eliminate
anything Obama from our
government. It is patheti-
cally appalling to watch the
way that “45” and his minions
are obsessed with President
Obama and the work he did.
As an example, Education
Secretary Betsy DeVos has de-
cided to “examine” the Obama
approach to campus rape. She
is more concerned, it seems,
with those accused of rape or
sexual assault than with the
victims.
Read the rest of this commentary at
TheSkanner.com