Ester Martinez Urias
PHIL355E
Module 3 (CSR)
Why the Equifax Breach
Stings so Bad
In Module three we have learned a lot of moral reasoning perspectives, as well as
Neoliberalism. After reading this article, I looked back on my learnings on data privacy and
technology. What is privacy? My assumptions on privacy was the idea of security and the
feeling of safety and freedom. As I dug deeper into what privacy means, I highlighted a new
concept of anonymity. It is known that privacy is a fundamental part of our daily lives. Without
privacy, we may feel uncomfortable, uncertain, or unsafe. A lot of companies have policies that
are not always followed, but applied to help protect its consumers’ privacy. For instance,
Medical records. One of the strictest protected records we hold.. yet it is still flawed and not
100% private. The United States Census, a document that collects data from citizens to analyze
economic activity and growth. Though it does not collect a lot of data, it is shared. Online
organizations or websites, such as Facebook. Protects privacy but still works with third party
companies and shares collected data on its users to them for marketing attacks/advertisements.
Overall, yes privacy is much needed but it is not secured. With this being said, it is no surprise
to me that the Equifax was breached. “It was a sense of helplessness, the recognition that we
are at the mercy of an
industry that makes money off our data, treats us with disdain and answers to no one.” (Pg1/9;
R. Lieber, 2017).
The Equifax breach harmed a lot of citizens, over a million of its consumers. Unlike
Facebook or the U.S. census which do not collect too much sensitive information on its users,
the Equifax breach collected a significant amount of sensitive information about individuals such
as social security numbers, which is one of the highest levels of personal data. As well as,
drivers license numbers, birth dates and addresses. These are-identifiers are used to track
people’s identity, losing their anonymity, as well as possible use of identity fraud.
Due to the negligence of Equifax, the patch in their framework was a vulnerability that caused
this chaos. Because Equifax did not provide the necessary security measures to protect this
data, they lost the trust between them and their consumers. The massive privacy violation was a
result of not taking advantage of updating, or adding privacy protection programs to their
systems. This harm was morally bad because it hurt a lot of people who trusted them with their
information. Lost of money was stolen and lives ruined due to this incident.
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The Equifax breach affected millions of consumers, leaking their personal
information due to the vulnerability of Equifax’s framework. In the article, we read that
an issue that was addressed was that its consumers did not have the option to Opt-Out.
Unlike the CCPA, a California law that protects its residents against these kinds of

privacy violations and concerns, allowing them the option to either opt-in or opt-out all
their information from an organization or third party. In this case analysis I will argue that
ethics of care tool for moral reasoning shows us that the Equifax breach harmed its
consumers by neglecting their responsibilities and that this was morally bad.
Looking into the way the owners of Equifax neglected their due diligence to protect
and serve their consumers data, I would view that the owner of this company leaned
more towards Milton Friedman’s theory on business. Freeman’s idea of business was to
make profit. Looking more into this case, that they lacked the much needed tools to
protect the data, while being such a large company with millions of consumer’s
reputation and money on the line. Friedman believed that business was only about
making profit and wasn’t really much on protecting data or investing in it. His ethical tool
was in a way both consequentialism and Contractarian. I conclude this because he is
both thinking about the consequences regarding the company and not the citizens. by
investing in privacy security, he is losing money and may be losing investors or third
parties who benefit from the data collection and sharing process. I also believe that
Friedman and Equifax both focus on Contractarian views as they both rely on trading
freedom or information for the benefits of their business. Milton Anshen on the other
hand, is more for the people. He contradicts what Friedman believes; believing that a
company only benefits and purpose is to serve society. Regardless of what they gain or
lose, they are ultimately successful because of what they do for the people. In other
words, they are nothing without their consumers. Which I agree with his perspective.
Looking back on the Equifax breach, I can say that they did not rely on that perspective.
The ethical tool for moral reasoning regarding Anshen’s views would be deontology and
ethics of care. With deontology, we see that a company does the right thing because it
is the right thing to do.
Melvin Anshen is known for his work on business ethics. He highlights the need for
corporate social responsibility. In the article we read, there is a lot of disregard to how
corporate handled the complaints from their clients. Instead of owning up to the mistake,
acknowledging the impact it made to millions and taking full responsibility, a lot of finger
pointing to other companies was made. As well as plain disregard. Anshen believes that
companies should consider their impact on society and their customers. Anshen also
believed in fair treatment through social contracts. Allowing room for ethical practices.
As a business owner, it is important to ensure that your company succeeds.
Running a successful company requires a lot of sacrifices, but does not mean going
against your own goals. Nobody ever wants to be the owner of a company that loses
more money than they make. But, when providing a service to customers who share
valuable information about themselves, it’s important to educate and invest in the right
tools to protect them, their information and yourself. Doing this, allows room for a longer
term, builds trust in relationships with your customers, and is ethically righteous. Using
the Equifax breach as a learning experience, more people can take the time to research

about a company, or ask questions before choosing to opt-in or trust them with their
information. Companies can also use Equifax as a learning opportunity to build and
develop their own business to prevent such mistakes happening in their own company.