Consumer complaint received 2025-07-31 00:00:00
Product: Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports — Credit reporting
Issue: Incorrect information on your report — Information belongs to someone else
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: TX

Complaint narrative:
In XXXX, my father used my identity without consent to open a XXXX credit card. He had full access to my Social Security number, address history, and financial information. XXXX was repeatedly notified that the account was fraudulent. Pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ), I formally requested all documentation required to validate the debt, including the original application, proof of identity, and any authorizations. XXXX failed to provide any of these, violating their statutory obligation to investigate. They only provided the transaction history. 

I independently analyzed that history and cross-referenced it with my own verified financial statements, travel records, and photographic evidence containing time-stamped location XXXX. These records prove I was in different states or countries when the charges occurred. I also identified charges made at locations likely to retain security footage ( liquor stores, gas stations, grocery stores ) to further disprove my involvement. I compiled extensive evidence to submit, but XXXX refused to review it and ignored all offers to provide documentation. 

The individual who committed the fraud confessed directly to XXXX on a recorded call. Over the course of multiple recorded calls, XXXX acknowledged that I did not open the account and knew who opened and used the account, yet told me they decided to hold me responsible despite that knowledge. They refused to conduct a reinvestigation, continued to attempt collection, and harassed me through repeated phone calls to the point of breakdown. They exploited my then-limited understanding of credit law to coerce me into accepting responsibility for a debt they knew I did not incur, pressured me to pay, and rejected payment from the actual perpetrator all while continuing to report the account as late despite repeated fraud reports. At XXXX point, they agreed ( again on a recorded line ) to transfer the account and remove it from my name, and to begin accepting payments from the perpetrator ( who was cooperating and continually admitting full responsibility ) to bring it current, only to later reverse that position and falsely deny ever making such an agreement. Despite the direct confession, overwhelming evidence, additional evidence offered, and multiple disputes with both XXXX and all three credit bureaus, the account was charged off and continues to be not only falsely reported but also reported monthly as charged off and XXXX days delinquent. No XXXX was ever issued despite the charge-off, which further illustrates the pattern of false reporting. In addition to all of this, I have submitted a formal FTC Identity Theft Report documenting the account as fraud. 

I have been disputing this account with Equifax for years. The dispute portal only displays XXXX years of history, but within that time alone, I have submitted XXXX formal disputes between XX/XX/XXXX, and XX/XX/XXXX, with additional disputes submitted prior to that. In each dispute, I explicitly stated that XXXX possesses a recorded confession from the individual who opened the account and has acknowledged that I did not open it. I explained that I did not open the account and gave the exact name of the person who did. I also explained that XXXX refused to review the evidence I compiled which was comprehensive and exculpatory and continues to report false information. 

Time and time again, Equifax responded with a generic statement that the information was verified by the furnisher, despite being explicitly informed that the furnisher XXXX had acknowledged on their own recorded lines that the account was fraudulent and not mine. Equifax closed each dispute within days XXXX in as little as XXXX days with an average resolution time of just XXXX days ( over the most recent XXXX disputes ), demonstrating that no reasonable reinvestigation occurred.

Equifaxs conduct violates multiple provisions of the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ) and controlling legal precedent : - FCRA 1681i ( a ) ( 1 ) ( A ) Duty to Conduct Reasonable ReinvestigationEquifax failed to conduct a reasonable reinvestigation of my disputes, closing them quickly without engaging with the evidence I provided or offered.

- FCRA 1681i ( a ) ( 4 ) Duty to Consider Relevant Information Submitted by the ConsumerEquifax failed to consider key evidence, including my detailed statements, travel documentation, and the fact that the furnisher acknowledged the fraud and had a recorded confession. 
- XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Precedent Prohibiting Blind Reliance on Furnisher VerificationEquifax unlawfully relied solely on Discovers verification of the account without conducting any independent inquiry despite being notified that the furnisher itself admitted the account was fraudulent.

- FCRA 1681n and 1681o Civil Liability for Willful or Negligent NoncomplianceThese repeated failures even after multiple disputes and direct notice of a confession constitute willful or at minimum negligent noncompliance with federal law.

- FTC Commentary to FCRA 1681i ( a ) Obligation to Recognize Patterns Indicating InaccuracyEquifax ignored a pattern of repeated disputes regarding the same account, each identifying it as fraudulent and providing consistent factual support. 

By continuing to report a known fraudulent account, disregarding the existence of a recorded confession, and depending on a furnisher that had already admitted the account was illegitimate, Equifax has demonstrated a reckless and systemic disregard for its obligations under the FCRA. 

Their continued reporting has caused severe and ongoing damage to my credit, dropping my score from the XXXX to the XXXX and introducing multiple major derogatory marks tied solely to this XXXX fraudulent account. As a result, Ive been denied housing, credit, and limit increases. Ive had to rely on co-signers for basic necessities and remain in a constant state of anxiety and emotional distress. Equifaxs refusal to investigate, its reliance on false furnisher verification, and its ongoing publication of known false information has caused irreparable financial and personal harm.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief