equifax
<font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">data breech</font></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
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</font></div><div><div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font></div></div><div><div><p style="box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">“We renew our resolve that A<a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DbYj4cDmilxc&t=MzliNWZjZTRhZDcxZjllYmYwYTQwYTg1YmRjNmJiN2U3MThhMWQ3NyxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none;">merica will never be a socialist country</a>,” Donald Trump said recently.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Someone should alert him that America is now a hotbed of socialism. But it’s socialism for the rich. Everyone else is treated to harsh capitalism.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">In the conservative mind, socialism means getting something for doing nothing. This pretty much describes General Motors’ receipt of <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fthehill.com%2Fopinion%2Fwhite-house%2F404629-trump-is-failing-to-bring-back-american-jobs&t=MzhiMDdiNDFmYTljZWFhOTllOTI2ZjkzMTk2MDU1OTk1MTVkMDExNSxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none;">$600 million in federal contracts</a>, plus <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com%2Fnews%2Farticles%2F2018-11-26%2Fgm-s-job-cuts-draw-angry-reaction-in-heartland-that-backed-trump&t=OTE2ZmEwZGM1ZWMxYmQ5YzM2ZDk1Zjc5YTI4Y2YyZDAyM2NkZDYyOSxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none;">$500 million in tax breaks</a>, since Trump took office.</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>Some of this corporate welfare has gone into the pockets of GM executives</b>. Chairman and <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-general-motors-proxy%2Fgm-ceo-barras-pay-dipped-slightly-to-22-million-in-2017-idUSKBN1HY2IG&t=ZWE3ODJlNWNmZTFkMGRhMmQ2Yjg5YmZiNmQwMmZiZmFhY2IxNzg1NSxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="box-sizing: border-box; background: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">CEO Mary Barra raked in almost $22 million in total compensation in 2017 alone</a>.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">But GM employees are subject to harsh capitalism. GM is planning to lay off more than <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com%2Fnews%2Farticles%2F2018-11-26%2Fgm-to-cut-10-000-jobs-targets-5-factories-for-closing-next-year&t=ODMzYTMzZjE4NGE4ODk3ODI4NmY3MzJjZWU1NWJiMjhiODA0ZWI5YSxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none;">14,000 workers and close three assembly plants and two component factories in North America by the end of 2019.</a></font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>The nation’s largest banks saved <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com%2Fnews%2Farticles%2F2019-02-06%2Fbanks-reaping-21-billion-tax-windfall-cut-staff-ease-off-loans&t=MmFiYjU5NzM2NzlhNWU4MzE0NzIyY2E0NmRhN2E2MDUyZThkMTUzYixDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none;">$21 billion last year thanks to Trump’s tax cuts</a></b>, some of which went into<b> massive bonuses for bank executives. On the other hand, <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com%2Fnews%2Farticles%2F2019-02-06%2Fbanks-reaping-21-billion-tax-windfall-cut-staff-ease-off-loans&t=MmFiYjU5NzM2NzlhNWU4MzE0NzIyY2E0NmRhN2E2MDUyZThkMTUzYixDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none;">thousands of lower-level bank employees got a big dose of harsh capitalism</a>. They lost their jobs</b></span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">. [vid]</span></font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Banks that are too big to fail—courtesy of the 2008 bank bailout—enjoy a hidden subsidy of some <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com%2Fopinion%2Farticles%2F2013-02-20%2Fwhy-should-taxpayers-give-big-banks-83-billion-a-year-&t=MmVhNjNmZTg0Zjc3YjUxM2YwNzJkZjU1ODNiNzI4ZDc2YTllOGY5YyxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="background: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none;">$83 billion a year</a> because they have the backing of the federal government. This hidden subsidy gives Wall Street, giant banks a huge advantage.</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In 2017, Wall Street’s bonus pool was<a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com%2Fnews%2Farticles%2F2018-03-26%2Fwall-street-bankers-average-bonus-jumps-to-highest-since-2006&t=ZTYzMDdkNDQxZTU2YzVkYjQ2OTYzNTNhMmI5MWU3ZDZkM2FjNzEyMCxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="box-sizing: border-box; background: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;"> $31.4 billion</a>. So, take away the hidden subsidy, and that bonus pool disappears, along with most profits. Trump and his appointees at the Federal Reserve are <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-fed-banks%2Ffederal-reserve-unveils-proposal-to-ease-regulations-for-larger-banks-idUSKCN1N522U&t=YTdmY2VkNDhlNjE0N2Q0MjZlMGU5YzYzNzU4MTNlOTUwMzM1ZTc4NyxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="box-sizing: border-box; background: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">easing bank requirements put in place after the bailout</a>. But they will make sure the biggest banks remain too big to fail.</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">When he was in business, <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnn.com%2F2016%2F06%2F22%2Fpolitics%2Fdonald-trump-defends-bankruptcy-history%2Findex.html&t=MGQ1NmFlZTc5NjdlYjYyOTM5OTFmMzE1ODM1MzFlNDEzMTZkZDlmNyxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="box-sizing: border-box; background: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">Trump perfected the art of using bankruptcy to shield himself from the consequences of bad decisions</a>– socialism for the rich at its worst –while leaving employees twisting in the wind. Now, all over America, executives who run their companies into the ground are getting gold-plated exit packages while their workers get pink slips.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Under socialism for the rich, you can screw up big time and still reap big rewards. </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnbc.com%2F2017%2F09%2F26%2Fequifax-ceo-walks-away-with-18-million-pension-benefit.html&t=ZjE2MTM5MThlZmY1MzgxNDMxYjczZTcyOTE0YjhiY2I5ZTk5ZmQ1OSxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none;">Equifax’s Richard Smith retired in 2017 with an $18 million pension</a> in the wake of a security breach that exposed the personal information of <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gao.gov%2Fassets%2F700%2F694158.pdf&t=NGRhOTQ1MTE3ZjAzMWIxMmRmMTMyNGI2MjZlNWEyNjkxODM0NDMxNixDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none;">145 million </a>customers to hackers.</span></font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Wells Fargo’s Carrie Tolstedt departed with a <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=http%3A%2F%2Ffortune.com%2F2016%2F09%2F12%2Fwells-fargo-cfpb-carrie-tolstedt%2F&t=MGI1Mjg0ZjFmZmJiMjE0ZTM5YWUxZGQ3MmQ5ODYyZTQ3MTVlMmY1NyxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="box-sizing: border-box; background: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">$125 million exit package after being in charge of the unit that opened more than 2 million unauthorized customer account</a>s.</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Whatever happened to the idea of a meritocracy – an economic system that allows everyone to get ahead through hard work, and economic gains go only to those who deserve them? </font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.piketty.pse.ens.fr%2Ffiles%2FAlvaredoGarbintiPiketty2017.pdf&t=YWI2MDgyZTNlZmM2NTJjYzUyNWEzZmJmMjVlMWUzNzgwNjkzYzgyZSxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="box-sizing: border-box; background: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">Around 60 percent of America’s wealth is now inherited</a>. Many of today’s super-rich have never done a day’s work in their lives. Trump’s response has been to expand this divide by cutting the estate tax to apply only to estates valued at over <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.forbes.com%2Fsites%2Fashleaebeling%2F2017%2F12%2F21%2Ffinal-tax-bill-includes-huge-estate-tax-win-for-the-rich-the-22-4-million-exemption%2F%23bb0932d1d541&t=MWNmNDE0YzNlOTA0ZTdlYmQwNDhjYjRlNmExYmFhNWRjOTRlNzQwYyxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="box-sizing: border-box; background: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">$22 million per couple</a>. <a href="https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.washingtonpost.com%2Fus-policy%2F2019%2F01%2F28%2Ftop-gop-senators-propose-repealing-estate-tax-which-is-expected-be-paid-by-fewer-than-americans-year%2F%3Futm_term%3D.194f4fa7b79a&t=OTMzMWViYzNjMTdhZTJmMDdiMzAzNzZmZmNhZDk4ZTk5NzhkOTFiZCxDem1scjVBcw%3D%3D&b=t%3AhQ9Ds4P3Iv6D7mgEr8WMqg&p=http%3A%2F%2Frobertreich.org%2Fpost%2F184071080675&m=1" style="box-sizing: border-box; background: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">Mitch McConnell is now proposing that the estate tax be repealed altogether.</a></font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>To the conservative mind, the specter of socialism conjures up a society in which no one is held accountable, and no one has to work for what they receive. Yet, that’s exactly the society Trump and the Republicans are promoting for the rich.</b></font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Meanwhile, most Americans are subject to an increasingly harsh and arbitrary capitalism.</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">They need stronger safety nets, and they deserve a bigger piece of the economic pie.</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">If you want to call this socialism, fine. I call it fair.</font></p></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></div></div></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><a href="https://theintercept.com/2018/05/17/ftc-bureau-of-consumer-protection-director-andrew-smith/">https://theintercept.com/2018/05/17/ftc-bureau-of-consumer-protection-director-andrew-smith/</a>
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</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">In <span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bold; letter-spacing: 0.1em; box-shadow: rgb(255, 255, 255) 0px 1px 0px, rgb(17, 17, 17) 0px 4px 0px; text-transform: uppercase;">A RARE</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.01em;"> </span></span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">party-line vote, the Federal Trade Commission appointed a corporate lawyer who has represented Uber, Equifax, Facebook, and a jailed payday lender to run its Bureau of Consumer Protection. </span>The appointment was one of the first moves of the new five-member panel, all of whom were confirmed by the Senate last month.</span></font></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.18px;">
</span></font><div data-reactid="187" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1em; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">“I am delighted to appoint such a stellar group of leaders to continue the FTC’s work on behalf of American consumers,” said FTC Chair Joseph Simons in a </span><a href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2018/05/ftc-chairman-joe-simons-adds-agencys-leadership-team" style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none;">statement</a><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">. The commission appointed heads for the bureaus of Competition and Economics and a General Counsel unanimously, as is typical for these positions.</span></font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1em; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>Only the appointment of Andrew Smith to the Bureau of Consumer Protection was controversial, with a 3-2 vote along party lines.</b><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> Democratic appointees Rohit Chopra and Becca Kelly Slaughter opposed Smith, and each laid out their concerns in written dissents.</span></font></span></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1em; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">No commission meeting was held in conjunction with the appointment; commissioners merely turned in their votes.</font></span></p></div><div data-reactid="197" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1em; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">As the New York Times </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/11/technology/ftc-consumer-protection-chief.html" style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none;">explained</a><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> last week, while Smith once worked at the FTC, he was most recently a partner with the financial services practice at<b> Covington & Burling, </b>a leading white-collar defense firm. His clients included dozens of financial institutions, credit-reporting agencies, and tech firms, including players in some of the most notorious corporate scandals of the past several years. For example, Smith represented </span><a href="http://www.kansascity.com/news/local/crime/article178784906.html" style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none;">convicted<b>payday lender Scott Tucker</b></a><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">, from whom the FTC won a</span><a href="https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/blogs/business-blog/2016/10/record-13-billion-ruling-against-scott-tucker-others-behind" style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none;"> $1.3 billion judgment</a><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> for deceiving and exploiting consumers. Tucker faces 16 years in prison.</span></font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1em; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">Three other Smith-repped companies have active investigations at the FTC: <b>Facebook, for potentially violating a 2011 consent decree over safeguarding user privacy; and Uber and Equifax,</b> over separate data breaches that exposed the personal information of hundreds of millions of Americans. Smith even </span><a href="https://www.cov.com/en/news-and-insights/news/2017/10/covingtons-andrew-smith-testifies-before-senate-committee-on-credit-reporting-and-data-security" style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none;">testified on Equifax’s behalf</a><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> in the Senate last year.</span></font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1em; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">Smith has said he would recuse himself from any investigations or enforcement involving companies with whom he has worked. But as Chopra writes in his </span><a href="https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/public_statements/1379515/chopra-statement_on_senior_leadership_picks_5-16-18_1.pdf" style="box-sizing: border-box; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none;">dissent</a><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">, “The Director should be our quarterback on the agency’s top priorities. But, I fear our quarterback will be spending too much time on the sidelines.”</span></font></p></div></div></div></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
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</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a href="http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-equifax-data-breach-20171002-story.html">http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-equifax-data-breach-20171002-story.html</a></font></div><div>
</div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">...S<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">mith</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> </span><a href="http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-equifax-ceo-20170926-story.html" target="blank" style="text-decoration-line: none;">stepped down</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">last week in the wake of the breach, which has sparked numerous federal and state investigations as well as outrage from lawmakers. His appearance Tuesday before the House panel will be the first of three before congressional committees this week.</span></font></div><p style="margin-bottom: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 27px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In his written testimony, Smith blamed the breach on “human error and technology failures” and said the company was a victim of “a massive theft.”</font></p><aside class="trb_ar_sponsoredmod" data-v-ntidd="1069557" data-adloader-networktype="nativo" data-withinviewport-options="bottomOffset=100" data-load-method="trb.vendor.nativo.init" data-load-type="method" style="margin: 5px 0px 25px; clear: both; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div class="trb_ar_nt" /></aside><p style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 27px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“The company failed to prevent sensitive information from falling into the hands of wrongdoers,” he said.</font></p><p style="margin-bottom: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 27px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“The people affected by this are not numbers in a database. They are my friends, my family, members of my church, the members of my community, my neighbors,” Smith said. “This breach has impacted all of them. It has impacted all of us.”</font></p><p style="margin-bottom: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 27px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Smith also said Equifax was “disappointed” with the rollout of a special website and call centers to deal with the fallout from the breach. The company “struggled with the initial effort” to help consumers, he said.</font></p><p style="margin-bottom: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 27px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Equifax has been criticized for waiting nearly six weeks to notify the public after learning of the hack July 29, and then initially making consumers give up their right to sue if they wanted free credit monitoring and identity theft protection. Equifax later backtracked on that requirement.</font></p><aside class="trb_ar_sponsoredmod" data-adloader-networktype="yieldmo" data-v-ymid="ym_1606464552242100545" data-role="delayload_item" data-withinviewport-options="bottomOffset=100" data-load-method="trb.vendor.yieldmo.init" data-load-type="method" style="margin: 5px 0px 25px; clear: both; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div id="ym_1606464552242100545" data-id="ym_1" class="ym ym_scroll" /></aside><p style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 27px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">On Aug. 1, three Equifax executives <a href="http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-equifax-insider-trading-20170908-story.html" target="blank" style="text-decoration-line: none;">sold thousands of shares of stock</a>. All the shares sold for about $146 each. The company’s stock sharply declined after the data breach was announced. It was about $108 on Monday morning.</font></p><p style="margin-bottom: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 27px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Equifax’s board of directors has formed a special committee and is “conducting a thorough review of the trading at issue,” Theodore M. Hester, an attorney retained by Equifax, said in a letter Friday to Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee.</font></p><p style="margin-bottom: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 27px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">....</font></p><p style="margin-bottom: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 27px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font></p><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
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