Equifax CEO Richard Smith Steps Down After Massive Data Hack

Equifax CEO Richard Smith has stepped down from the credit monitoring agency as it deals with the aftermath of a data breach that exposed the personal information of up to 143 million customers, the company announced Tuesday.

"The cybersecurity incident has affected millions of consumers, and I have been completely dedicated to making this right,” Smith said in a statement. “At this critical juncture, it is in the best interests of the company to have new leadership to move the company forward."

Earlier this month, the credit reporting agency revealed that hackers had breached the company from May to July 2017. However, the company delayed publicly disclose the breach until September and has widely been criticized for its response to the attack. Bloomberg reported that three Equifax senior executives sold nearly $1.8 million in shares before the company disclosed the breach and the company initially offered identify theft protection to customers only if they agreed to waive their rights to sue them in a later lawsuit.

Smith is the latest executive to depart Equifax following its data breach, as its chief information officer and chief security officer both retired from the company Sept. 14. Equifax has been the subject of a spate of investigations from regulators and Smith previously agreed to testify in front of lawmakers in October. As part of Smith’s agreement with Equifax, he will not receive a bonus or severance for 2017 and will be an unpaid advisor to the company for up to 90 days.