Consumer complaint received 2019-05-22
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: CA
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports
Sub-product: Credit reporting
Issue: Unable to get your credit report or credit score
Sub-issue: Other problem getting your report or credit score

Complaint:
Dear Director XXXX : In early XXXX, I was a victim of identity theft. I promptly filed a police report at the local police department. I contacted all the major credit bureaus in order to put a fraud alert and a security freeze on my social security number and name. And I notified XXXX that my account had unauthorized transactions and credit checks such as fraudulent credit card applications, fraudulent loan applications, and other financial irregularities. 

At that time, I also requested copies of my credit reports  from the three ( 3 ) major credit bureaus to review them for fraudulent activity. I received copies of my credit reports from XXXX and XXXX, however not from Equifax. Therefore I contacted Equifax again approximately 2 months later in XXXX to request a copy of my credit report. I did not receive it. 

A couple of months later in the fall of XXXX I followed up again with XXXX and asked them to provide me with a copy of my credit report. I did not receive it. 

In the ensuing months, I had family emergencies to tend to and therefore did not have time again until XXXX of XXXX to address this issue again and renew my requests with Equifax. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, I made four ( 4 ) separate telephone calls to Equifax over an eight ( 8 ) hour workday to request a copy of my credit report. I explained that I had been a victim of the Equifax data breach among other things and that I needed to review my own credit report for accuracy. 

During those telephone calls, I spoke with multiple agents and representatives, including supervisors who asked me several security questions and said that they would not send me my report unless my answers matched whatever their data said. I gave them accurate and truthful answers to their security questions throughout over 2 hours during these 4 telephone calls, however at the end they refused to send me my credit report. They asked me for my name, address, social security number, loan application ( auto/personal/school ) credit history, employment ( current employer ) and revolving credit card history ( issuing bank/type/minimum monthly payment ). I gave them thorough and accurate and truthful answers to their questions but they refused to verify me and refused to send me my own credit report. As I explained to them, I have no idea whether their data that they are comparing my truthful answers to is even accurate. 

Considering they know that I have had identity theft and have a fraud alert on my social security number, this is an outrage, particularly coming from Equifax whose data breach likely caused my problem to begin with, and considering Equifax 's own head legal counsel signed off on their executives participate in insider trading, fraud on the stock market as well as other unsavory and illegal financial activities. Thus I am hard pressed to be anything other that totally angry that they chose not to assist a customer such as myself legitimately seeking to authenticate the accuracy of my own credit report. 

I want you to follow up with Equifax and investigate their unlawful refusal to provide me with my own credit report in violation of Fair Credit Reporting Act. 

I also intend to provide a copy of this report to Rep. XXXX XXXX ' U.S. House Congressional House Committee on Financial Services via Rep. XXXX XXXX who chairs the House Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions in support of the Committee 's ongoing investigation into the ongoing overreach and abuse of power by consumer credit reporting agencies such as Equifax seeking to conceal the damage their data breach has caused to consumer credit ratings.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief