ATLANTA — Nearly half of the United States has been impacted by a massive cyber security incident at one of the three largest credit agencies in the country. <br /> <br />NBC reports that credit reporting agency Equifax has announced that it suffered a massive data breach which compromised the personal information of 143 million Americans. <br /> <br />Stolen data included names, social security numbers, addresses, and birthdays. Credit card numbers of 209,000 consumers were also taken, along with the dispute documents of 182,000 others. <br /> <br />These personal details may well be used to engage in fraud and identity theft schemes, which Equifax was ironically in the business of protecting people from. <br /> <br />Hackers reportedly accessed the data in mid-May through a web vulnerability, and maintained access until July 29. <br /> <br />The data breach extends beyond the U.S., with Equifax saying data from people in Canada and the UK may have also been exposed. <br /> <br />Likewise, people who aren't customers of Equifax may also be affected, since the firm obtains information from credit card companies, banks, and other sources to determine a person's credit score. <br /> <br />The company is currently cooperating with the FBI, which is investigating the incident. They're also working with an independent security firm for extra protection.
