IRS Explains Why It Gave Equifax a $7 Million Contract After Breach

Nextgov: Three weeks after Equifax experienced a massive data breach affecting 145 million Americans, the IRS awarded the credit monitoring company a $7 million sole-source contract to help prevent tax fraud, according to contracting documents.

News of the contract dumbfounded members of Congress Wednesday, one day after recently resigned Equifax Chief Executive Officer Richard Smith told lawmakers on the Hill that Equifax did not, for example, encrypt sensitive consumer information on its servers.

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