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A major data breach was recently announced by Capital One. This latest data breach affects 100 million people in the United States.
Between March and July 2019, a hacker was able to access to 100 million Capital One customer accounts. Capital One fixed the vulnerability right away and began working with law enforcement. Their investigation uncovered one of the largest data breaches in recent years.
The suspect, Paige Thompson, was arrested on the same day Capital One announced the data breach. Thompson is a 33 year old from Seattle. She was able to intentionally gain access through a “firewall misconfiguration.” Thompson even boasted on social media that she obtained information from Capital One illegally.
Capital One will notify you if your account or personal information has been impacted. They will also offer free credit monitoring and protection.
The Capital One data breach isn’t the first data breach to happen and it’s definitely not going to be the last. There are certain things you can do to keep your information more secure.
Here are some ways to keep your personal information more secure so you can prevent identity theft and protect your personal information:
If you’ve been a victim of the Capital One data breach (or any other data breach), there are steps you can take to protect your identity. Credit monitoring will help you identify any potential issues on your credit report.
Monitoring your credit report and credit scores are a very important part of identity protection. Make sure to review your personal data (bank accounts and other sensitive info), credit report and credit scores on a regular basis. Consumers are entitled to a free credit every 12 months from AnnualCreditReport.com. You can also sign up with Credit.com to view your credit score. With Credit.com you get two credit scores every 14 days and a credit report card for free.
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