Congresswoman Maxine Waters, a ranking member of the United States House Committee on Financial Services, called Friday for a complete overhaul of the credit reporting system in the U.S.

Waters’ statement came a day after Equifax disclosed a major breach of its systems, in which private data on as many as 143 million Americans, including social security numbers, addresses and more, was exposed.

“This hack into sensitive information compiled and maintained by Equifax is one of the largest data breaches in our nation’s history and someone has to be held accountable,” Waters said.

“Given the important role credit scores play in the lives and financial futures of hardworking Americans, Congress must diligently examine the way our credit reporting agencies are operating and impose additional statutory and regulatory reforms to protect the integrity of the country’s credit reporting system,” she said in a statement.

Waters said she will continue to advocate for “an overhaul of our nation’s credit reporting system” and that she will soon introduce new legislation to better protect consumers and their private identities.

Waters also called on Equifax to offer free credit freezes. Equifax is currently offering affected customers complimentary identity theft protection and credit monitoring.

Equifax did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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Source: Tech CNBC
Following Equifax breach, Congresswoman Waters calls for credit reporting overhaul