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Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

bloomberg.com

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Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#531

Post by incompatible »

wildmusings wrote: post #522
mtanski wrote: post #511

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In principle that's true... In reality 1. You can be shot by a cop even if you do not pose a real threat (they just need to claim they though you might have a gun, simple) 2. People are routinely kept in jail for unreasonably long time because their families cannot afford bail often on things charges are dropped for later 3. Ever hear of civil forfeiture? The whole thing is a nice story that we love to repeat to each…

> Ever hear of civil forfeiture? Yes, a process in which the government has to prove to the same standard of evidence as someone suing you. That is due process.

Due process has been somewhat lacking in practice. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/19/us/politics/justice-depar...

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#532

Post by ci5er »

chimeracoder wrote: post #409
trobertson wrote: post #234

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed to it under compulsion. It isn't feasible to go without a banking account / credit union account. Modern society relies on these accounts. And all of these accounts have these reporting measures in their legalese. There is no option to not agree to it.

> Agreed to it under compulsion. It isn't feasible to go without a banking account / credit union account. Modern society relies on these accounts. A) A credit account is not the same thing as a checking account or credit union account B) Plenty of people, even in the US, operate without any of these things. It's not fun, but it's absolutely possible.

> Plenty of people, even in the US, operate without any of these things

After my company crashed, my wife divorced me and then I got cancer -- things were pretty grim on my credit-worthiness story. Net-net: I went without a bank-account for a few years and learned to live with pre-paid phones, money-orders, cashing checks at pawn-shops and pre-paid debit cards, and (for medical and other reasons - not able to drive. Good news: I saved on car insurance, gas and parking). All-in-all ... not a lot of fun (it's very expensive and time-consuming to be poor in America!).

But! As you say: it is do-able.

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#533

Post by incompatible »

drewmol wrote: post #526
cletus wrote: post #340

Ok, so credit reporting agency collects sensitive personal and financial data on basically every adult American, loses it to a bunch of criminals and now I have to deal with the consequences? I looked into credit freezes yesterday. This is really a total scam. You have to _call_ each of the three agencies and pay a fee ($5 to $10) each time. If you need to unfreeze your report to make a legitimate credit application…

I posted this on another less popular thread about the topic; Equifax stock was down about 14% overnight from yesterday to this morning but held pretty steady today... "This is not financial advise: I remember a few commentors on HN recently saying they have made large gains by buying stock of companies after the news of cyber security breaches significantly reduced the share value, then waiting for the dust to settl…

It depends on how well the proposed multi-billion dollar lawsuit goes. It's reasonable that the stock price would include a risk premium.

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#534

Post by zbentley »

chrismealy wrote: post #486
mmagin wrote: post #240

Earlier quoted context omitted.

USPS is no longer really part of the federal government.

Yes it is, 100%.

Well . . . 85.7% (6/7). On Sundays, it's Amazon's: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-07-30/it-s-amaz...

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#535

Post by ci5er »

mmagin wrote: post #240
3JPLW wrote: post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

USPS is a good contender for identity validation, too.

USPS is no longer really part of the federal government.

How so? It is one of the very few constitutionally enumerated functions of the federal government, and I don't remember it being privatized?

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#537

Post by 90s-socal-kid »

joe_the_user wrote: post #426
dragonwriter wrote: post #415

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The government can't just dissolve a corporation on a whim. Not on a whim, but for (e.g., in Delaware) “abuse, misuse or nonuse of its corporate powers, privileges or franchises.” (Delaware Code Title 8, § 284.) > We have due process and the rule of law. While rarely used in practice currently (it was more used in the past, and there is a movement to revive the practice), the law provides for charter revocation for…

The point is that charter revocation requires both the executive and judicial branch to agree. Moreover, I think I can guarantee that any vague sounding statement like "abuse, misuse or nonuse of its corporate powers, privileges or franchises." has been translated into a series of relatively specific conditions by the courts. You can't just sue someone for being vaguely terrible. Basically, however appalling the unac…

This assumes the highest good is to maintain the previously defined delineation of governmental branches.

Some of the legislative branch dysfunction is due to interference from the same corporate interests they should govern.

Corporations are able to DoS their oversight.

You are correct there will be unexpected messiness. The question becomes whether our current trend is sustainable over the long term; many believe the second order effects cannot be worse than the path we are currently on.

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#538

Post by 90s-socal-kid »

joe_the_user wrote: post #500
subroutine wrote: post #479

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It doesn't seem like the executive and judicial branches will need to get involved whatsoever if there is a multibillion dollar lawsuit; if successful this will basically 'dissolve' Equifax.

Well, I wouldn't shed any tears over the dissolution of Equifax and other credit agencies - though a lawsuit would of course involve the judicial branch (the courts). But the problem is: A. If Equifax gets a judgment for close to or for more than the company is worth, the simplest way one could assure the suit is paid to sell the company, keeping the operation going rather than ending it. B. Many businesses integrate…

If there were a $17 billion judgement against a $17 billion company, it would not sell for $17 billion.

It is also unlikely a $17 billion market cap = $17 billion in assets during an emergency sale. Especially with the shadow of a $17 billion judgement that could encumber the acquired assets.

It's bad business to acquire assets from someone with a judgement against them, unless you're getting a great deal.

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#539

Post by trounce »

Taek wrote: post #289
eduren wrote: post #9

>In the complaint filed in Portland, Ore., federal court, users alleged Equifax was negligent in failing to protect consumer data, choosing to save money instead of spending on technical safeguards that could have stopped the attack. Doesn't "users" imply that we had a choice in the matter? As if we're Equifax's customers? I feel more like we're victims in this case.

Got an email from my Dad today: "I checked myself, my wife, you and your brother. To the best of my knowledge none of us have Equifax accounts, but it says they probably got our address & driver's license for all four of us. I don't want to waste money on LifeLock. What can I do? Just watch my accounts?" Is Visa, MasterCard, etc. at least partially to blame here for picking a bad solution? My personal ties are not wi…

Visa and MasterCard don't issue credit cards, don't provide credit, don't have your personal information, and don't provide personal information to credit agencies. They are just the network that connects card issuing banks and merchant acquiring banks to process payments.

Your contract is with your card issuer, who provided your personal information to the credit agencies. But you probably agreed not to sue them as part of your agreement when you asked them to issue you a card.

Re: Equifax Faces Multibillion-Dollar Lawsuit Over Hack

#540

Post by heartbreak »

vel0city wrote: post #132
heartbreak wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All of the identities have been stolen. It’s a matter of whether they’re used at this point.

True, but in the US you can not really sue for possible harms. You can only sue for actual harms which can be remedied by the court. Leaking your information isn't a harm the court can remedy. Abuse of the leaked information is a harm the court can remedy.

Fair point. I would argue that Equifax has breached one of the terms of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and possibly other privacy regulations.
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