CLINTON — Just about everyone who’s been paying attention to the recent Equifax hacking case is now scrambling to protect their personal information.  Local property owners can get some extra help by going onto the DeWitt County Web site.

Equifax is one of the three U.S.-based credit reporting agencies.  A hack recently made vulnerable the personal information of some 143 million people, information that could include Social Security numbers, among other data.

Credit reporting agencies are used primarily by merchants and banks to check a customer’s credit worthiness, usually associated with borrowing money.

Property owners, too, can face a risk in connection with the recent Equifax breach, but locally, the DeWitt County Recorder’s office is offering a service to help protect those people.

Through www.propertyfraudalert.com, property owners can sign up to receive alerts of potential property fraud.

The service won’t stop the fraud, but it will alert property owners of suspicious activity, DeWitt County Clerk Dana Smith says.

If local residents go onto the county’s Web site at www.dewittcountyill.com and click on the “DeWitt County Clerk & Recorder” tab, located on the left, they can then click on “Protection from Property and Mortgage Fraud,” which will take them to the Web site offering the service.

Property owners can subscribe for free online.  They also can call the Property Alert Fraud Hotline at (800) 728-3858.

The county doesn’t collect any revenue from the service.

“We just wanted to get the word out that this was available,” Smith said.