New York, Illinois Attorney Generals Probe Equifax Data Breach

New York and Illinois' attorneys general said Friday they were opening separate state investigations after Equifax Inc said personal details of as many as 143 million U.S. consumers were accessed by hackers between mid-May and July, in what could be one of the largest data breaches ever in the United States.

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan urged Equifax to suspend its charge for placing a credit freeze on consumer accounts in light of the risk of identity theft.

Earlier, a congressional spokesman said aides would get a briefing on Friday from the company.

Staff will receive a briefing on the incident from Equifax officials, said Jeff Emerson, a spokesman for the U.S. House of Representatives' Financial Services Committee. Equifax shares were down 13 percent in heavy trading early Friday afternoon.