Consumer complaint received 2025-05-07 00:00:00
Product: Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports — Credit reporting
Issue: Improper use of your report — Credit inquiries on your report that you don't recognize
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: GA

Complaint narrative:
RE : Formal Complaint Unauthorized Hard Inquiries on My Credit Reports ( XXXX XXXX XXXX ) To Whom It May Concern, This letter is a formal complaint regarding unauthorized and unverified hard inquiries that have appeared on my credit reports from XXXX XXXX, and XXXX. These inquiries were not authorized by me, and I never applied for credit with many of these entities, nor did I provide consent for them to access my credit file. 

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ) 604 ( a ), no entity may access a consumers credit report without a valid permissible purpose and express authorization. The presence of these inquiries without supporting authorization documentation is a clear violation of federal consumer protection laws. Despite attempts to address this directly with the credit reporting agencies, the inquiries remain and continue to negatively affect my credit profile. 

Unauthorized Hard Inquiries ( Sample Full List Attached ) XX/XX/XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Legal Grounds and Supporting Case Law Per FCRA 604 , credit inquiries are only lawful with consumer authorization and a legitimate purpose. I was never presented with any disclosure or application related to many of these creditors. Therefore, these inquiries were made unlawfully.

Case Law References : XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX ( XXXX Cir. XXXX ) bureaus must remove unverified data. 

XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX failure to remove unverifiable inquiries creates liability. 

XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX ( XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX ) accessing a consumer report without consent violates FCRA. 

Requested Action I respectfully request that the CFPB investigate this matter and : Require documentation from each credit bureau verifying that each listed inquiry was properly authorized.

Direct the removal of all inquiries that lack proper signed authorization or permissible purpose.

Provide a full written response and resolution from each credit reporting agency involved. 

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I appreciate your assistance in enforcing federal consumer protections on my behalf. 

Sincerely, XXXX XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation