Consumer complaint received 2022-07-21
Company: NAVY FEDERAL CREDIT UNION
State: VA
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports
Sub-product: Credit reporting
Issue: Incorrect information on your report
Sub-issue: Information belongs to someone else

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX, an unknown individual opened a credit card at Navy Federal Credit Union ( NFCU ) using my identity. The account was closed on XX/XX/XXXX but still remains on my credit score. It has negatively impacted my credit by approximately 150 points to a low of XXXX points on XX/XX/XXXX. I have never had any kind of banking relationship with NFCU. 

As of today ( XX/XX/XXXX ) when I checked my credit report, the fraudulent account status shows as " Collection/Chargeoff '' with a balance of {$7100.00}. 

I became aware of the identity theft in XXXX and reported the fraudulent activity to NFCU on XX/XX/XXXX, speaking to XXXX from their security department ( XXXX ). He indicated a typical timeline of 10-15 business days to investigate and resolve with a letter being mailed to me to indicate final outcome. 

I called NFCU again on XX/XX/XXXX, speaking with a XXXX from their security team, who could provide no additional information on the status of my incident and said they are addressed in order they are received, suggesting there was high volumes. 

I called NFCU again on XX/XX/XXXX and spoke with XXXX from their security team. She could also not give me a much of an update but did seem to indicate it was taking a longer time than expected. She escalated my incident to her managers. 

I called NFCU again on XX/XX/XXXX and spoke with a woman from the tier 1 help desk team. Every previous time I called in and transferred to the security team, it took at nearly 1.5 hours to get transferred and I didn't have time to wait on this occasion, as the hours overlap with my job 's hours. The help desk operator offered to send an instant message through an internal system while I was on the phone to XXXX, asking her if there was any updates to my incident that she could relay to the help desk/ me. There was very little update other than her managers had been made aware. 

Finally, I called NFCU again today ( XX/XX/XXXX ). After transferring from the tier 1 help desk team to the security team, I sat on hold for 2.5 hours before someone from security picked up. I spoke with XXXX. She indicated that since this was a fraudulent credit card, that someone from the Card Fraud Prevention ( CFP ) team would need to be involved. This was the first time I'd heard that information. XXXX also indicated that CFP isn't a public facing team. She put me on hold to find out what status could be ascertained. She indicated that my file had been escalated and also acknowledged my incident was taking a longer than typical time to resolve. 

While NFCU didn't steal my identity, they clearly have gaps in their identity verification process that allowed a fraudulent account to be opened initially. Further, their customer service organization is a disaster. The wait times to speak with their security team are always over an hour. In addition, they forbid their tier XXXX security team members from making outbound calls or communicating via email, making contacting them a herculean task. Finally, the visibility they can provide into your incident is extremely limited. All the while, your credit score is being wrecked. 

Given that NFCU markets itself as an organization dedicated to serving our military XXXX XXXX, I would suggest that based on how challenging it has been for me to get this resolved, it would be nearly impossible for a XXXX XXXX  XXXX to have any ability to successfully solve an incident like mine. They should be required to fix their internal security problems ASAP or be barred from referencing the XXXX XXXX to create a perception of creditability as an organization.

Company public response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief