5 ms·

In an ideal world, a white-hat would write a script that uses all of the hacked data to apply for the settlement on behalf of the hacked users so that the affec

by rundmc 7y ago

In an ideal world, a white-hat would write a script that uses all of the hacked data to apply for the settlement on behalf of the hacked users so that the affected users don't have to individually work out how to hack Equifax's claims process.

Traster 7y ago
You're missing the point. There is no hack. You can claim, but in order to claim you need to provide evidence you have credit monitoring. So in order to get 31 cents from equifax you need to prove that you're using an expensive useless service that is either provided by equifax or one of their equally useless competitors. The hacking was done in court.
- sokoloff 7y ago
  Creditkarma is free. Several credit cards/banks also offer free/bundled credit monitoring.
  - shawnz 7y ago
    Why should it be my responsibility to monitor their services in the first place? Even if you do get free credit monitoring it's just yet another technique to shift blame on to the customer
    - fuzz4lyfe 7y ago
      It really is insane that people buy these services. Do you hire a security guard to stand in front of the bank as well?
  - deepsun 7y ago
    Lenders don't look at credit karma, so they are useless, can show you any number you like.
    - sokoloff 7y ago
      The point is not whether it's good or bad; the point is that it's a free service that allows you to tell Equifax truthfully that you want the check and not their free credit monitoring.
    - tialaramex 7y ago
      That's not how this works. Credit Karma buys the data for their free product from Equifax. So if lenders look at Equifax (and they do) then that's the exact same data. You might wonder, "But if their product is free and they spend money buying the data for it, how can that make financial sense?" and that's the thing most consumers don't understand. What's better than selling advertising? Selling actual _customers_. Nobody (to a first approximation) is looking at credit scoring because they're bored, they are looking because they want to borrow money - they are potential customers for a lender. So you sign into Credit Karma and it says you're doing well, and they suggest you could get this MegaBank Gold Card. In fact, they've checked and you'll definitely qualify, no risk. You sign up, and MegaBank give Credit Karma a bunch of money for _finding them a new customer_.
      - ceejayoz 7y ago
        > Credit Karma buys the data for their free product from Equifax. Well, sorta. Credit Karma uses VantageScore 3.0 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VantageScore https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VantageScore), which is different from the various FICO offerings, sometimes substantially. VantageScore has four different generations. FICO has over sixty variants - by credit bureau, relevant industry (there is, for example, a mortgage-specific calculation), and generation (FICO 8 vs FICO 9). As a result, depending on what score offering they pull, your lender may see a number that's 100 points different than the one Credit Karma shows. > So you sign into Credit Karma and it says you're doing well, and they suggest you could get this MegaBank Gold Card. In fact, they've checked and you'll definitely qualify, no risk. This is another misconception. "Pre-approval" doesn't mean they actually ran the numbers; they just have stats on how many people with a similar VantageScore succeeded when they applied via CK's referral links. If you look closely, CK's "you're pre-approved!" tag actually has this disclaimer underneath it: "90% of pre-approved applicants get this card. Approval not guaranteed; subject to checks."
  - propogandist 7y ago
    CreditKarma is a data mining operation that should not be trusted with your data.
    - theferalrobot 7y ago
      Source? What data would they mining? Isn't credit data already available to the public?
      - colejohnson66 7y ago
        Ive never heard of this either. Yes, they use your data to offer you cards and they get a kickback for you signing up, but data mining?
amelius 7y ago
In an ideal world, a government agency would fine Equifax the full amount, and customers could claim their money from them instead.
- crispyambulance 7y ago
  Or better, liquidate Equifax entirely to demonstrate that there are consequences that a fancy law firm can't mitigate. I realize that's wishful thinking. Of course they're going to get away with paying what is effectively a parking ticket. Nor will any of their executives face any meaningful repercussions.
  - dawnerd 7y ago
    Courts would also have to bar current board members and maybe even investors from founding another credit agency. Not good enough to kill the company, gotta make sure it doesn’t come back.

by rundmc 7y ago

Traster 7y ago

You're missing the point. There is no hack. You can claim, but in order to claim you need to provide evidence you have credit monitoring. So in order to get 31 cents from equifax you need to prove that you're using an expensive useless service that is either provided by equifax or one of their equally useless competitors. The hacking was done in court.

sokoloff 7y ago
Creditkarma is free. Several credit cards/banks also offer free/bundled credit monitoring.
- shawnz 7y ago
  Why should it be my responsibility to monitor their services in the first place? Even if you do get free credit monitoring it's just yet another technique to shift blame on to the customer
  - fuzz4lyfe 7y ago
    It really is insane that people buy these services. Do you hire a security guard to stand in front of the bank as well?
- deepsun 7y ago
  Lenders don't look at credit karma, so they are useless, can show you any number you like.
  - sokoloff 7y ago
    The point is not whether it's good or bad; the point is that it's a free service that allows you to tell Equifax truthfully that you want the check and not their free credit monitoring.
  - tialaramex 7y ago
    That's not how this works. Credit Karma buys the data for their free product from Equifax. So if lenders look at Equifax (and they do) then that's the exact same data. You might wonder, "But if their product is free and they spend money buying the data for it, how can that make financial sense?" and that's the thing most consumers don't understand. What's better than selling advertising? Selling actual _customers_. Nobody (to a first approximation) is looking at credit scoring because they're bored, they are looking because they want to borrow money - they are potential customers for a lender. So you sign into Credit Karma and it says you're doing well, and they suggest you could get this MegaBank Gold Card. In fact, they've checked and you'll definitely qualify, no risk. You sign up, and MegaBank give Credit Karma a bunch of money for _finding them a new customer_.
    - ceejayoz 7y ago
      > Credit Karma buys the data for their free product from Equifax. Well, sorta. Credit Karma uses VantageScore 3.0 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VantageScore https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VantageScore), which is different from the various FICO offerings, sometimes substantially. VantageScore has four different generations. FICO has over sixty variants - by credit bureau, relevant industry (there is, for example, a mortgage-specific calculation), and generation (FICO 8 vs FICO 9). As a result, depending on what score offering they pull, your lender may see a number that's 100 points different than the one Credit Karma shows. > So you sign into Credit Karma and it says you're doing well, and they suggest you could get this MegaBank Gold Card. In fact, they've checked and you'll definitely qualify, no risk. This is another misconception. "Pre-approval" doesn't mean they actually ran the numbers; they just have stats on how many people with a similar VantageScore succeeded when they applied via CK's referral links. If you look closely, CK's "you're pre-approved!" tag actually has this disclaimer underneath it: "90% of pre-approved applicants get this card. Approval not guaranteed; subject to checks."
- propogandist 7y ago
  CreditKarma is a data mining operation that should not be trusted with your data.
  - theferalrobot 7y ago
    Source? What data would they mining? Isn't credit data already available to the public?
    - colejohnson66 7y ago
      Ive never heard of this either. Yes, they use your data to offer you cards and they get a kickback for you signing up, but data mining?

amelius 7y ago

In an ideal world, a government agency would fine Equifax the full amount, and customers could claim their money from them instead.

crispyambulance 7y ago
Or better, liquidate Equifax entirely to demonstrate that there are consequences that a fancy law firm can't mitigate. I realize that's wishful thinking. Of course they're going to get away with paying what is effectively a parking ticket. Nor will any of their executives face any meaningful repercussions.
- dawnerd 7y ago
  Courts would also have to bar current board members and maybe even investors from founding another credit agency. Not good enough to kill the company, gotta make sure it doesn’t come back.