The breach
Feb. 4, Anthem announced a data breach that leaked names, birth dates, Social Security numbers, email and street addresses and employment and income details.
Some of its 80 million current and past employees and customers might be affected.
Health care and banking information and credit card numbers were not leaked.
For more information on the situation, visit www.anthemfacts.com.
- To place a credit freeze
To send a letter by certified mail, include the following information: full name, including middle initial and generation (Jr., Sr. etc.); Social Security number; complete addresses for the past five years; date of birth; a copy of a government-issued identification card; and one copy of a utility bill, bank or insurance statement. Michigan residents should also include either a $10 fee or a valid investigative or incident report of alleged theft or a complaint filed with a law enforcement agency. -
• Equifax Security Freeze: P.O. Box 105788, Atlanta, GA 30348; 800-685-1111; bit.ly/16zfMJo
• Experian Security Freeze: P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TX 75013; 888-397-3742; bit.ly/1Adj178
• TransUnion LLC Security Freeze: P.O. Box 2000, Chester, PA 19022-2000; 800-680-7289; www.transunion.com
It could be a while yet before Anthem knows how many of its 80 million customer and employee records were compromised during its recent data breach.
Once it does, it will notify the affected people by mail and says it will provide two years of free credit monitoring and ID theft protection for them.
But fraud experts and state officials in Indiana and Michigan are urging people not to wait for notification to act.
Instead, they recommend that people register for a credit freeze, also known as a security freeze, with the three credit reporting bureaus -- Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. That will prevent someone from taking out a line of credit in your name without your permission, but still allow you to use your credit cards. And it can be lifted at any time if you want to apply for a credit card or loan.
The process is simple and can be done online or via certified mail.
In Michigan, residents who can prove identity theft are not charged for a freeze. Everyone else is charged $30 to register -- $10 for each credit bureau. It also costs $10 to lift the freeze at each bureau.
Thanks to a 2007 state law, Indiana residents pay no fees to place, temporarily lift or remove a credit freeze. Another law also makes it possible for Indiana parents to place a credit freeze on behalf of their children. But to do so, they must fill out a form provided by each credit bureau and mail it. The forms can be found at IndianaConsumer.com.
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