credit reporting agency

demented_kitteh

Is Experian Letting Anyone Access Your Credit Freeze PIN?

By 9.21.17 — Updated: 9.22.17

UPDATE: Experian tells Consumerist that its authentication processes go farther than previously identified steps. The company regularly reviews its security practices and adjusts as needed.

Placing a credit freeze on your accounts following a hack or issue with identity theft is only effective if the credit reporting agency you’re working with doesn’t give ne’er-do-wells the ability to unfreeze the accounts by providing the same information that any good ID thief already knows about you. This is a lesson some victims of Equifax’s recent data breach are learning after freezing their accounts with fellow credit reporting agency Experian.  [More]

Two Equifax Execs Exit Company Following Massive Data Breach

Two Equifax Execs Exit Company Following Massive Data Breach

By 9.18.17

The full extent of Equifax’s recently revealed, massive data breach isn’t known yet — although 143 million US customers and tens of millions of others globally are thought to be affected — but top executives are already having to answer for the debacle, with two Equifax officers making a sudden exit. [More]

TransUnion Must Pay $60M For Mistakenly Tagging People As Possible Terrorists

TransUnion Must Pay $60M For Mistakenly Tagging People As Possible Terrorists

By 6.21.17

A federal jury in California has ordered credit reporting agency TransUnion to pay $60 million to individuals it wrongly tagged as terrorists or drug traffickers. [More]

Experian Fined $3M, Accused Of Misleading Consumers About Usefulness Of Credit Scores

Experian Fined $3M, Accused Of Misleading Consumers About Usefulness Of Credit Scores

By 3.23.17 — Updated: 5.10.17

Two months after federal regulators fined two of the nation’s largest credit reporting agencies — Equifax and TransUnion — $23 million for misleading consumers about the cost and usefulness of credit monitoring services, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has announced a $3 million settlement with Experian over allegations that the credit agency misled consumers about the usefulness of the credit scores available for purchase. [More]

(frankieleon)

My Identity Was Stolen, Then TransUnion Let The Fraudster Unfreeze My Accounts

By 2.8.17

One of the smart things to do when your identity has been stolen is to contact the three major credit reporting agencies — TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian — to discuss placing a temporary fraud alert and credit freeze on your accounts. But as one Consumerist reader found out, all it takes to remove those restrictions is the same information that any good ID thief already knows about you. [More]

Mike Mozart

Will Costco’s Switch From American Express To Visa Affect My Credit?

By 4.6.16

In June, Costco will officially change its store-branded credit card from American Express to a Visa card issued by Citi. The wholesale club is promising a seamless transition, but some longtime Costco customers have concerns: Will my credit score or history be dinged? Can I opt-out?  [More]

Subprime Credit Reporting Company To Pay $8M For Illegally Obtaining Consumers’ Credit Info

Subprime Credit Reporting Company To Pay $8M For Illegally Obtaining Consumers’ Credit Info

By 12.3.15

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, companies – and lenders – are allowed to access credit reports only for “permissible purposes,” like determining if a person is creditworthy. But federal regulators say a Florida-based subprime credit reporting company illegally obtained tens of thousands of consumers’ credit reports for use in marketing materials for potential clients, including payday lenders.

[More]

How Much Is A Company That Knows All About Your Financial Behavior Worth? Turns Out A Lot.

How Much Is A Company That Knows All About Your Financial Behavior Worth? Turns Out A Lot.

By 6.25.15

It’s no secret that consumer financial data is valuable: it determines if you get better rates on loans and allows lenders to predict the likelihood you’ll pay back debts. While we can’t necessarily put a price tag on that data (yet), we now know that one of the largest companies to collect that information is worth a bundle – 4 billion bundles, in fact. [More]

(Chris Goldberg)

Looking To Finance A New Or Used Vehicle? You’re Likely In For The Long-Haul

By 6.1.15

Purchasing a new or used vehicle can represent quite a commitment for consumers, especially as the length of an average vehicle loan continue to get longer, now reaching all-time highs. [More]