Consumer complaint received 2024-04-15 00:00:00
Product: Debt collection — Credit card debt
Issue: Attempts to collect debt not owed — Debt was result of identity theft
Company: DISCOVER BANK
State: OH

Complaint narrative:
Discover is stating that I used a XXXX cellphone in the commission of this fraud per their response " XX/XX/XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, OH XXXX RE : Discover Card account ending in XXXX Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Case # : XXXX Dear XXXX XXXX XXXX We have received your recent correspondence to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau XXXX CFPB ). To ensure that your concerns are efficiently addressed, your inquiry has been referred to my attention within the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX at Discover. Our records indicate the above referenced account was opened in your name on XX/XX/XXXX, through an application received via the internet on XX/XX/XXXX. You provided your address, social security number, date of birth, and we verified the information based on the request to open the account. As the application was submitted via the internet, there is no signed application to provide ; however, you did provide your electronic acknowledgement and agreement to the application terms and conditions. Based on the review of your CFPB correspondence asserting the account is fraudulent, we reviewed the details of the account. As a result, it was determined that you are liable for the account balance. We have listed below some of the reasons you are found liable are as follows. The account was opened and maintained from XX/XX/XXXX to XX/XX/XXXX. The information on the account like your name, date of birth, and mailing address, verifies to you via public record. On XX/XX/XXXX, you registered the account online using the email address on the account. We note this is the same email address you provided in your CFPB correspondence. Verification security codes were sent to the phone number ending in XXXX and were all successfully validated. XXXX XXXX  was activated for XXXX XXXX. Balance transfers were requested on the account. On XX/XX/XXXX, your account charged off due to non-payment, with a balance of {$15000.00}. As our attempts to collect the balance were unsuccessful, on XX/XX/XXXX, Discover filed a Form 1099-C for the XXXX tax year, which may have tax consequences. We can not provide you with tax advice. If you have any questions, Discover encourages you to consult a tax adviser of your choosing. Please understand, the issuance of the IRS Form 1099-C is separate from the credit reporting for the account. Although we are no longer collecting on the account, our records indicate the past due status as well as the reporting balance of your account is valid, and the issuance of a Form 1099-C does not alter this reporting. I have enclosed a copy of the form for your records. We have confirmed that we are accurately reporting your account to the credit bureau reporting agencies. As such, we are unable to honor your request to remove your above referenced account from your credit file ( s ) as it is a factual representation of what occurred, and we are obligated to report true and accurate information to the credit reporting agencies. For your records, the most recent 24 months of statements have been enclosed/sent under a separate cover. However, due to your dispute, we will continue to report your account as 'disputed ' until you advise Discover to remove the dispute status. We report to the following credit bureau reporting agencies : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX PA XXXX XXXX GA XXXX XXXX TX XXXX XXXX PA XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX As of XX/XX/XXXX, we have taken the appropriate actions to prevent future contact regarding the status of the account. Please understand that taking this action does not relieve you of your responsibility to repay and may prevent us from notifying you of repayment assistance and options. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to be of service. Should you have questions regarding the Form 1099C, you may contact our XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  at ( XXXX ) XXXX. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at XXXX. I am typically available XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  ). Sincerely, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX : Consumer Financial Protection Bureau '' I contacted XXXX XXXX after I spoke with Discover XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX and she advised me to get a letter from XXXX XXXX to validate my claim that I never had a phone with XXXX XXXX. I called XXXX XXXX and verified that I don't nor have I ever had a XXXX XXXX  account see attached letter

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation