• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechEquifax

Equifax May Owe You Some Money. Here’s How to Get It

By
Don Reisinger
Don Reisinger
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Don Reisinger
Don Reisinger
Down Arrow Button Icon
July 22, 2019, 2:02 PM ET

Equifax has agreed to pay nearly $700 million for the 2017 data breach that exposed personal information like Social Security numbers of nearly 150 million people. And now, the victims will finally get a little money.

In a statement on Monday, Equifax said that the payout to consumers includes $425 million that will cover credit monitoring and out-of-pocket losses because of the breach, as well as the cost of “identity restoration services.” Equifax will pay the remainder to the federal government.

The amount of money consumers will receive varies. But it could be as much as thousands of dollars, depending on how they were impacted.

Here’s how:

Data breach recap

In 2017, Equifax had one of the largest data breaches in history. By the time Equifax discovered the hack, the hackers had taken the birth dates, credit card numbers, and Social Security numbers of millions of people.

Are you in the class?

The people eligible for benefits from the settlement are the 150 million people affected by the breach. You will be able to check whether you’re among them after Exquifax debuts a tool to do so on the following web site.

Credit monitoring or cash?

Class members will first have the option of free credit monitoring for four years or a cash payment of $125. Those who’d prefer the cash must already have credit monitoring in place for at least six more months. People who have less than six months of credit monitoring left, don’t qualify for the payment.

A $20,000 payment

Equifax will also pay $20,000 to consumers who can prove that they suffered “fraud, identity theft, or other misuse” because of the data breach. Equifax will also pay them $25 per hour for up to 20 hours of time they had spent trying to safeguard their data. Equifax will also reimburse them for out-of-pocket losses and up to 25% of the cost of Equifax credit or identity monitoring. Exactly how Equifax will require consumers verify their costs is unknown.

Get your identity back

Equifax will be covering free Identity Restoration services for no fewer than seven years to anyone affected by the data breach. Equifax didn’t say what those services were, but it did say it would help to “remedy the effects of identity theft and fraud.”

More must-read stories from Fortune:

—Fortune’s 2019 40 Under 40

—How automation is cutting into workers’ share of economic output

—How the maker of the world’s bestselling drug keeps prices sky-high

—Want to buy a Spanish village? This real estate agent has 400 to sell

—One of Warren Buffet’s favorite metrics is flashing red. Corporate profits are due for a hit

Subscribe to Fortune’s CEO Daily newsletter for the latest business news and analysis.

About the Author
By Don Reisinger
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

Stressed out job seeker on laptop
Successjob hunting
Job-seekers aren’t imagining things: the number of candidates getting ghosted by employers just reached a three-year high
By Emma BurleighMarch 20, 2026
60 minutes ago
SuccessCareers
AI boom is fueling demand for skilled trades—and demand for technicians, HVAC workers, and electricians is soaring, with six-figure salaries to match
By Preston ForeMarch 20, 2026
2 hours ago
LawX
Three Tennessee teenagers are suing Elon Musk’s xAI for creating sexually explicit images of them
By The Associated Press and Travis LollerMarch 20, 2026
2 hours ago
Trump standing waving hi at a crowd
AIDonald Trump
The White House has a plan for AI regulation, and it starts with keeping states out of it
By The Associated Press and Seung Min KimMarch 20, 2026
4 hours ago
london
Commentaryinvestment banking
The 19th century banking problem that AI hasn’t solved yet
By Silvio Savarese and Sabastian NilesMarch 20, 2026
4 hours ago
spreng
CommentaryVenture Capital
Unicorns are flush with cash and stuck. A new kind of startup crisis is taking hold in 2026
By David SprengMarch 20, 2026
5 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.