Consumer complaint received 2024-12-01 00:00:00
Product: Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports — Credit reporting
Issue: Improper use of your report — Reporting company used your report improperly
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: FL

Complaint narrative:
This complaint addresses serious and egregious violations of federal law committed by XXXX, Equifax, XXXX ( the Credit Reporting Agencies or CRAs ), and XXXXXXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX regarding their mishandling and unlawful reporting of my personal data, privacy breaches, and fraudulent classification of charged-off debts. Their actions not only infringe upon my statutory rights but also cause significant harm to my financial well-being and reputation. 


Failure to Honor Opt-Out Rights Under FCRA ( 15 U.S.C. 6802 ) Under 15 U.S.C. 6802, consumers have the right to opt out of the sharing of non-public personal information ( NPI ). I am formally opting out of any prior or assumed authorizationswritten, verbal, implied, or otherwisegranted to the CRAs or XXXX And XXXX XXXX to use or share my data. Despite this clear directive, these entities have willfully disregarded my right to privacy by continuing to disseminate my XXXX without consent. 


2. Violations of the Privacy Act of 1974 The Privacy Act of 1974 mandates that entities handling personal information must notify individuals of its use and provide them with a meaningful opportunity to restrict or control its dissemination. 

Violation : XXXX, Equifax, XXXX, along with XXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX failed to notify me of how my personal information was being shared with third parties and denied me the ability to opt out of these unauthorized disclosures. 
Impact : This lack of transparency infringes upon my fundamental rights to control the use of my personal data. 


XXXX. Illegal Reporting of Charged-Off Debts as Income ( 15 U.S.C. 6801 ) Charged-off debts reported to the IRS via a 1099-C are reclassified as income under federal tax law. Income, however, is not permissible for inclusion on a consumer credit report under the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ). XXXX, Equifax, XXXX, and [ Bank Names ] are knowingly violating federal law by falsely reporting charged-off debts as derogatory items instead of removing them as required. 

Violation : The continued reporting of charged-off debts as derogatory trade lines violates 15 U.S.C. 1681c ( a ), which governs the permissible content of consumer reports. 
XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX, the court confirmed that debts reported inaccurately or without proper validation are unlawful under the FCRA. This precedent underscores that creditors and CRAs must remove such items promptly.

Impact : This misclassification harms my creditworthiness and exposes me to undue financial hardship and damage.

4.Negligence and Gross Misconduct by Each Bank and CRA Each of the following entities has engaged in illegal reporting and privacy violations : XXXX AND XXXX : Refused to validate a charged-off debt and continued reporting it despite being reclassified as income. 



XXXX, Equifax, and XXXX : Complicit in reporting unvalidated, inaccurate, and impermissible information, including charged-off debts and transaction histories without my authorization. 



The actions of XXXX, Equifax, XXXX, and XXXX and XXXX XXXX violate the following federal statutes and case law precedents : Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ) : 15 U.S.C. 16811681x.

Privacy Act of 1974 : Public Law 93-579. 
Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act ( GLBA ) : 15 U.S.C. 68016809. 
XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX. XXXX XXXX ( XXXX XXXX. XXXX ) : Addressing unlawful debt reporting practices. 
XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX. XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ( XXXX XXXX XXXX ) : Highlighting the illegality of misleading credit reports.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation