Equifax Equifax Online Investigation

Calling Equifax is very frustrating because you have to wade through directory after directory and give out a lot of very personal information before you even get to talk to someone. I'm not sure that I was comfortable with entering the information, even though in security, it should be safe. However, the reason I was calling was because of a potential data breach, so it seemed like they would be a little more careful about how they collect information. This is a phone call that you would not want to make in a public place. 

I needed to talk to someone about my daughter's credit because I was just informed that her data was compromised in an alert. I don't know how you go about setting up a credit monitoring account for a child. She's only five, so that is why I wanted to talk to someone about what the right procedure would be for this. 

When I first called, it said, "Thank you for calling Equifax consumer care," and then stated, "To add a short statement to your Equifax credit report noting that you have been financially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, remain on the line to talk to a customer representative." It then proceeded to say, "If you have a question about the 2019 data breach settlement, say settlement or press 9." Finally, after all that, it said, "Okay, let’s get started; in a few words, tell me how I can help you today." I said, "Talk to someone about a credit report issue."

It then asked me if I was calling about a dispute, and I said no. That was incorrect, and it directly launched into a set of options. I'm unsure if it even recognized what I was saying to it. Instead, it just said, "Alright, let me give you some security options. For Equifax security freeze, say freeze or press 1. For fraud alerts or active duty reports, say alerts or press 2. For your Equifax credit report or credit score, say report or press 3. To dispute an Equifax report or dispute a pending status, press 4. For anything else, say other or press 5."

I pressed 5 since my situation wasn't on the list, and then I got another set of options that included, "If you are calling for help with Equifax.com, say or press 1. For help with Equifax services, press 2. For information regarding a product feature, say monitoring or press 3. For anything else, including questions, say questions or press 4."

I pressed 4, and then it requested a lot of information that it said it needed before it would connect me to an agent, including my Social Security number, address, ZIP Code, and phone number, which I then had to verify with my mobile device. It was eight minutes before I got to a customer service agent who spoke with a thick accent and was hard to understand. I hung up and will go with a different credit monitoring system. It just didn't make me comfortable at all.