Slashdot: FTC Says 'You Will Be Disappointed' if You Choose $125 For Equifax Payout

FTC Says 'You Will Be Disappointed' if You Choose $125 For Equifax Payout
Published on August 01, 2019 at 01:00AM
The Federal Trade Commission said today there's been "overwhelming" interest in a settlement agreement with Equifax, and that consumers looking for a previously announced payout of up to $125 may be disappointed. From a report: The agency said this month that it had reached a $700 million agreement with the credit reporting agency over a massive breach of private data in 2017. As part of the settlement, consumers whose data was compromised could request up to $125 or free credit monitoring services. The potential for a quick payout generated major interest, but only $31 million of the settlement was set aside for cash payouts, meaning each payout could be far smaller than $125, depending on how many people request one. In a blog post today, the FTC tempered expectations. "A large number of claims for cash instead of credit monitoring means only one thing: each person who takes the money option will wind up only getting a small amount of money," the agency said. "Nowhere near the $125 they could have gotten if there hadn't been such an enormous number of claims filed."

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Slashdot: US Army Soldier Arrested In AT&T, Verizon Extortions

US Army Soldier Arrested In AT&T, Verizon Extortions Published on January 01, 2025 at 02:35AM An anonymous reader quotes a report from KrebsOnSecurity: Federal authorities have arrested and indicted a 20-year-old U.S. Army soldier on suspicion of being Kiberphant0m, a cybercriminal who has been selling and leaking sensitive customer call records stolen earlier this year from AT&T and Verizon. As first reported by KrebsOnSecurity last month, the accused is a communications specialist who was recently stationed in South Korea. Cameron John Wagenius was arrested near the Army base in Fort Hood, Texas on Dec. 20, after being indicted on two criminal counts of unlawful transfer of confidential phone records. The sparse, two-page indictment (PDF) doesn't reference specific victims or hacking activity, nor does it include any personal details about the accused. But a conversation with Wagenius' mother -- Minnesota native Alicia Roen -- filled in the gaps. Roen said that prio...

Slashdot: US Army Soldier Pleads Guilty To AT&T and Verizon Hacks

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Slashdot: AT&T Now Lets Customers Lock Down Account To Prevent SIM Swapping Attacks

AT&T Now Lets Customers Lock Down Account To Prevent SIM Swapping Attacks Published on July 02, 2025 at 01:30AM AT&T has launched a new Account Lock feature designed to protect customers from SIM swapping attacks. The security tool, available through the myAT&T app, prevents unauthorized changes to customer accounts including phone number transfers, SIM card changes, billing information updates, device upgrades, and modifications to authorized users. SIM swapping attacks occur when criminals obtain a victim's phone number through social engineering techniques, then intercept messages and calls to access two-factor authentication codes for sensitive accounts. The attacks have become increasingly common in recent years. AT&T began gradually rolling out Account Lock earlier this year, joining T-Mobile, Verizon, and Google Fi, which already offer similar fraud prevention features. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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