On October 24, the CFPB issued Circular 2024-06, which warns companies using third-party consumer reports, particularly surveillance-based “black box” or AI algorithmic scores, that they must follow the Fair Credit Reporting Act with respect to the personal data of their workers. This guidance adds to the growing body of law that protects employees from potentially harmful use of AI.Continue Reading CFPB Warns Employers Regarding FCRA Rules for AI-Driven Worker Surveillance

On June 11, the CFPB announced a proposed rule amending Regulation V, which implements the Fair Credit Reporting Act, to alter the treatment of medical debts in credit reporting. The rule proposes to remove medical bills from most credit reports, disallow the consideration of medical debts in credit decisions, enhance privacy protections, and curtail credit reporting practices that the Bureau deems coercive.Continue Reading CFPB Proposes Rule to Transform Credit Reporting Practices on Medical Debt

On March 29, the CFPB and the FTC jointly filed an amicus brief with the Eleventh Circuit in a matter involving a dispute under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The case involves a consumer who filed disputes with a consumer reporting agency (CRA) after discovering multiple errors in her credit file, including incorrect personal information. However, the CRA failed to delete the disputed information, notify any furnishers of the consumer’s dispute, or provide the sources of the disputed information. The consumer sued, alleging the CRA violated the FCRA’s reinvestigation requirement by failing to reinvestigate her dispute regarding her name, address, and SSN information. The CRA claimed the text of the CRA did not require it to reinvestigate incorrect personal identifying information. At summary judgment, the district court found that while the reinvestigation requirement applied to personal identifying information, the CRA did not “willfully or negligently” violate the FCRA because its interpretation of the reinvestigation requirement was not objectively unreasonable.Continue Reading CFPB and FTC Argue Consumer Reporting Companies Have an Obligation to Correct Errors in Joint Amicus Brief

On April 2, at an event at the White House on Data Protection and National Security, CFPB Director Rohit Chopra’s articulated potential changes to the data security regulation landscape and noted that the Bureau is considering rules to amend the Fair Credit Report Acting, tightening the regulation of data brokers that trade in sensitive consumer data. His remarks follow an Executive Order signed by President Biden five weeks ago aimed at protecting American’s sensitive personal data from “countries of concern.” Continue Reading CFPB Announces Potential FCRA Expansion Targeting Brokers of Consumer Data

On January 11, the CFPB issued two advisory opinions providing guidance to consumer reporting agencies (CRAs) on the Bureau’s views on FCRA compliance obligations with respect to background check reports and credit file disclosures. Continue Reading CFPB Continues Focus on Credit Reporting with Guidance on FCRA Compliance

On September 21, the CFPB announced that it has initiated a rulemaking process under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) that would remove medical bills from consumer credit reports. The CFPB also published an Outline describing the proposals and alternatives that it will consider in the FCRA rulemaking process, which, if finalized, would:Continue Reading CFPB Initiates FCRA Rulemaking on Medical Debt and Data Brokers

On September 11, the FTC announced that it had reached a settlement with two “people-search” companies which would resolve charges that the companies had engaged in practices that violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”). The California-based defendants market “people-search” services, allowing users to search unlimited background reports on individuals, and charge monthly subscription fees to view the full reports. Searches can be run using an individual’s name and/or city and state of residence.Continue Reading FTC Settles FCRA Suit Against “People-Search” Companies

On January 7, the FTC announced that a California-based lead generator agreed to settle with the FTC for $1.5 million to resolve allegations that through a number of its subsidiaries, the company induced consumers into sharing their personal financial information and then sold that information from these loan applications as “leads” to a variety of entities without regard to whether these entities are lenders or use the consumers’ data to make loans.
Continue Reading Lead Generator Settles with FTC Over Alleged FCRA and FTC Act Violations