The CFPB has issued an outline of proposals for a rulemaking under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) regarding data brokers, credit reporting disputes, and medical debt on credit reports. In general, we support the CFPB’s proposals. The CFPB’s proposals will protect consumers from the significant harms of data broker practices, such as selling sensitive…
Read More about Comments to CFPB's Outline of Proposals for FCRA Rulemaking
CFPB to use its rulemaking authority under the Fair Credit Reporting Act to address rampant harm caused by data brokers.
The data broker industry is a $240 billion industry that is growing, opaque, intrusive, and potentially harmful to consumers, yet largely unregulated. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) presents a meaningful avenue to address this regulatory gap for many companies in this industry, if the CFPB issues a rule that defines the scope of the…
Credit scores have been used for decades to assess consumer creditworthiness, but their scope is far greater now that they are powered by algorithms. Not only do they consider vastly more data, in both volume and type, but they increasingly affect whether you can buy a car, rent an apartment, or get a full-time job.…
Read More about MIT Technology Review: Can AI fix your credit?
Three 2019 decisions from Second, Seventh, and Ninth Circuits, discussed below, have allowed companies that share data on consumers to evade Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requirements. This article points out that these firms should be careful what they wish for. Consumers may still be in a position to sue them even if they are…
The National Consumer Law Center (on behalf of its low-income clients), Consumer Action, Consumer Federation of America, and U.S. PIRG express significant concerns about the Financial Data Privacy bill discussion draft, whichwould amend the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA). While claiming to strengthen GLBA and increase consumer protections, this bill actually wouldresult in fewer rights for consumers,…
The below-signed immigrant rights, consumer rights, and privacy organizations urge the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to use the full force of its authority under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) to rein in widespread harmful behavior by the data broker industry. The CFPB’s statutory purpose, in part, is to ensure that “markets for consumer…
Below is a list of with information from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) about many consumer reporting companies, updated for 2021. Consumer reporting companies collect your information and provide reports to other companies. These companies use these reports to inform decisions about providing you with credit, employment, residential rental housing, insurance, and in other…
Rent reporting carries huge risks for renters, especially the most vulnerable families who struggle with housing costs.
Alternative data has the potential to benefit millions of consumers, whether they are “credit invisible” or they have impaired records with the traditional Big Three nationwide consumer reporting agencies or “credit bureaus” – Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. However, alternative data is not without its risks.Much of the analysis of whether alternative data will benefit or…
