Consumer complaint received 2021-04-15
Company: DISCOVER BANK
State: MT
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Other features, terms, or problems
Sub-issue: Privacy issues

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX I received a suspicious email from Discover Credit Card / Discover Protection Services XXXX. The email was requesting that I open a link in the email and complete IRS Form 4506 - C. My first thought was, why & under what authority does a creditor have to request access to my tax returns. I called Discover Credit Card at XXXX ( XXXX ) XXXX even though the email stated if I had any questions, I should call XXXX ( XXXX ) XXXX. I spoke to the Discover Representative and shared my concern regarding the email, the request of my tax returns, & phone number provided in the email. She advised me to ignore it because it was a scam, but I felt that the Discover Representative was not taking the matter seriously, so I asked to be transferred to the FRAUD DEPARTMENT. When I spoke to the Discover Representative in the fraud department, I was advised that Discover is demanding that I complete IRS Form 4506-C so they can review my previous 2 years of tax returns. I asked the Representative under what authority does Discover have to request the tax returns of one of their clients & I was told in a patronizing & sarcastic tone " IN THE CREDIT AGREEMENT '' I asked them to hold while I obtained a copy of the credit agreement & once I did I couldn't locate the wording of Discover asking & requiring a Client to complete & submit IRS Form 4506-C. I asked the Discover Representative to please guide me to where on the credit agreement it states that Discover can at any time demand a client to complete IRS Form 4506-C and have access to a clients IRS Tax returns. The Discover Representative stated, " I don't know where it is ''. I then asked to speak to a Supervisor and was placed on a extended hold. When the Discover Representative came back on the line, he stated that a Supervisor is not available & if I don't comply my credit card ending ( XXXX ) will be permanently closed & I will be responsible for any outstanding balance. I have two Discover Credit Cards, one ending in XXXX ( {$3500.00} Credit Limit ) & the other ending in XXXX ( {$5500.00} Credit Limit ). Since I was granted both Discover Credit Cards, I have an excellent payment History with no missed payments, late payments exceeding 30 days, & always paying more than the minimal requirement. On XX/XX/XXXX I filed a complaint with CFPB ( XXXX ) regarding Discover arbitrarily reducing my credit limit on my Discover Credit Card ending in ( XXXX - same card in this complaint ) EMPHASIZING that Discover actions has had a negative impact on my credit score, credit worthiness & resulting on my debt to income/available credit rise in a significantly. A discover representative contacted me after I filed my complaint with the CFPB & advised me that Discover is going to reverse their decision and restore my credit limit to it's original amount. It's been 4 months now since that incident and now I'm facing another incident with Discover regarding the same credit card ( retaliation for my original complaint filed against Discover with the CFPB??????? ) I refuse to comply with Discovers request to have access to my Tax Returns. Allowing Discover to have access to my confidential IRS data is insane. They already have access to my entire credit reports from the credit bureaus as well as my excellent purchase and payment history accumulated during my time with both Discover Credit Cards.If they have access to my IRS tax history, they'll know my charitable and political donation recipients, my investment practices including stock investment gains/losses and financial firms that I use for investment purposes and they'll know my deductions and expenses. Discover already have a privacy policy that allows them to share anything they know about me with their " business partners and affiliates '' for any purpose they want including marketing products and services & it's not in my best interest to empower any 3rd party marketing firms to target me. 

In the response from Discovery I will like them to direct me where I can read for myself that at any time they reserve the right to ask for my tax returns because I cant find it. Please refer to the attachment and view the Discover Credit Agreement.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief