What you might get from the Equifax data breach settlement

People affected by the 2017 Equifax data breach — that's nearly 150 million U.S. consumers — will soon be eligible to apply for compensation. The settlement with regulators, announced Monday, includes up to $425 million to pay claims relating to the exposure of personal financial data.

Affected consumers will receive several years of help with credit monitoring, but the elevated risk of identity theft is lifelong.

To protect yourself — whether you were caught in this breach or not — it's best to freeze your credit with all three major credit bureaus (the others are Experian and TransUnion).

A federal district court must approve the settlement. Once the court approves it, the claims process can begin.

Most benefits are for people affected by the breach, but some are for all U.S. consumers. Once the settlement is approved, the Equifax settlement website will provide a tool consumers can use to determine if they are eligible to seek compensation. There is also a national hotline at 833-759-2982.

All U.S. consumers are eligible to receive six additional free credit reports from Equifax every year for the next seven years. That could help them watch for signs of identity theft.

People affected by the breach are eligible to receive:

• Refunds of any fees paid to freeze or unfreeze credit after the Equifax breach was announced and refunds of the cost of credit monitoring initiated after the breach. In addition, those who paid for credit protection from Equifax itself in the year before the Sept. 7, 2017, breach announcement can apply for refunds up to 25% of the cost.

• Losses from unauthorized charges to their account; costs for other breach-related expenses, such as attorney fees, postage and notary stamps. Compensation, at $25 per hour, for time spent dealing with the breach, up to 20 hours.

• $1 million in identity theft insurance coverage.

• Identity restoration services (i.e., coaching to help them resolve identity theft).

Although you can't yet apply for restitution, you can check the Equifax Breach Settlement website and sign up for e-mail updates from the FTC. While you wait for the application period to open, begin gathering bills or receipts to substantiate your costs if your paying for credit monitoring. If you paid fees to freeze or thaw your credit after the breach, gather documentation.

It's essential that you get yourself ready to file. "Consumers should start filing claims as soon as they start being accepted," says Chi Chu Wu, National Consumer Law Center staff attorney. "The more claims, the more Equifax pays." A consumer can receive up to $20,000.