Equifax breach is the worst leak of personal info ever

[alfred russel]

Not to go all Mono on us, but does this stuff really matter? I agree it is annoying if my name, address, and social security number are leaked, but does it really negatively impact me in a serious way?

[Berkut]

Not to go all Mono on us, but does this stuff really matter? I agree it is annoying if my name, address, and social security number are leaked, but does it really negatively impact me in a serious way?

[The Minsky Moment]

I can see liability lawsuits coming, but I am not sure on what basis they will succeed.  Can lawtalkers talk here about the obligations Equifax had, and to whom?

Cases usually get brought alleging state law violations, including consumer protection laws or business practices laws - some of which are quite broad - or state common law claims on theories like negligence, breach of contract, quasi-contract, or unjust enrichment.

The usual defense approach in these cases is to move to dismiss for lack of standing on the ground that there is insufficient evidence of injury.  A 2013 Supreme Court case is often interpreted to suggest that some proof is needed of actual identity theft or economic loss - that can be difficult to show as the bad guys usually don't publicize their bad acts.  In this case - however - given the depth and breadth of the info - social security, drivers license numbers, birth dates etc - there is a better chance of convincing a court of injury.

[Grey Fox]

Not to go all Mono on us, but does this stuff really matter? I agree it is annoying if my name, address, and social security number are leaked, but does it really negatively impact me in a serious way?

Yes.

[Berkut]

So two days ago I got a call from my credit card company, asking me if I was really spending $2987.48 with some unknown internet company in Spain.

Of course I was not, so they denied the charge and cancelled my card.

But I am sure there is nothing really to worry about around internet security.

[Berkut]

Every knowledgeable person I have heard or read on the topic agrees that it is the worst ever, by quite a large margin.

Do you have links to authoritative sources that say it was not the worst ever?

Dan Goodin didn't say it was the worst ever in the article Tim posted.

Tim never claimed he did. Tim chose the thread title, and probably felt it was a reasonable conclusion that he was presenting.

The contents of the article make that a supportable position.

I have no idea what your objection is here. If you think it is NOT the worst ever, then fine - make that argument. But Tim, or anyone else, is perfectly free to choose his thread titles as they see fit. There is nothing in his title that is unreasonable.

[alfred russel]

So two days ago I got a call from my credit card company, asking me if I was really spending $2987.48 with some unknown internet company in Spain.

Of course I was not, so they denied the charge and cancelled my card.

But I am sure there is nothing really to worry about around internet security.

I've had similar things happen to me. Not once have I been stuck with the charges (and in your example the sale apparently didn't even go through, so neither the card company nor the vendor was harmed). So...who cares?

[alfred russel]

I have no idea what your objection is here.

I've stated my objection. Sorry you struggle to comprehend.

[Berkut]

So two days ago I got a call from my credit card company, asking me if I was really spending $2987.48 with some unknown internet company in Spain.

Of course I was not, so they denied the charge and cancelled my card.

But I am sure there is nothing really to worry about around internet security.

I've had similar things happen to me. Not once have I been stuck with the charges (and in your example the sale apparently didn't even go through, so neither the card company nor the vendor was harmed). So...who cares?

Do you really lack the imagination necessary to understand why it is concerning that they were able to even run the transaction at all?

[Berkut]

I have no idea what your objection is here.

I've stated my objection. Sorry you struggle to comprehend.

Comprehending your objection certainly is a struggle.

[The Minsky Moment]

I've had similar things happen to me. Not once have I been stuck with the charges (and in your example the sale apparently didn't even go through, so neither the card company nor the vendor was harmed). So...who cares?

But someone does get stuck with the charge - either the credit card company or the vendor.  To the tune of billions per year. 

Guess who ends up paying that cost?

[alfred russel]

But someone does get stuck with the charge - either the credit card company or the vendor.  To the tune of billions per year. 

Guess who ends up paying that cost?

In this specific case it seems as though the charge didn't go through.

But in any event, is the downside that if credit card companies start losing too much money to fraud I'll suffer when they reduce the number of airline miles I get with a dollar of spend? Or in a really doomsday scenario credit cards cease to be such a viable business model, and we go back to using cash?

[The Minsky Moment]

Credit card fraud losses mean the issuers or networks have to charge higher transactions fees which means higher prices.

[alfred russel]

Credit card fraud losses mean the issuers or networks have to charge higher transactions fees which means higher prices.

If the transaction fees are too high, then vendors can always have two prices: one for cards and one for cash (I believe the post 2008 financial reforms mandated that this be possible, but even if they did not, it is a relatively easy fix - much easier than truly securing all data).

[alfred russel]

I have no idea what your objection is here.

I've stated my objection. Sorry you struggle to comprehend.

Comprehending your objection certainly is a struggle.

For some. I venture that there are some wise people on the forum that understood what and why I was objecting.