FCRA | Privacy and Information Security Law Blog

FTC Sends Warning Letters to Data Brokers Regarding FCRA Violations

Posted on May 9, 2013 by Hunton & Williams LLP

On May 7, 2013, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it issued letters to ten data broker companies warning that their practices could violate prohibitions against selling consumer information under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”). The FTC identified the ten data broker companies after a test-shopping operation that indicated these companies were willing to sell consumer information without adhering to FCRA requirements.

Tags: Consumer Protection, Credit Report, Cross-Border Data Flow, Data Protection Authority, FCRA, Federal Trade Commission, Financial Privacy, Information Security, Online Privacy

SEC and CFTC Adopt Rules on Red Flags and Identity Theft

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Hunton & Williams LLP

On April 10, 2013, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) jointly adopted rules that require broker-dealers, mutual funds, investment advisers and certain other regulated entities to adopt programs designed to detect “red flags” and prevent identity theft. These rules implement provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, that amended the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) to direct the SEC and the CFTC to adopt rules requiring regulated entities to address risks of identity theft. The 2003 amendments to the FCRA required other regulatory authorities to issue identity theft red flags rules, but did not authorize or require the SEC or the CFTC to issue their own rules.

Tags: Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Dodd-Frank Act, FCRA, Financial Privacy, Identity Theft, Securities and Exchange Commission

FTC Sends FCRA Warning Letters to Tenant Rental History Websites

Posted on April 4, 2013 by Hunton & Williams LLP

On April 3, 2013, the Federal Trade Commission issued a press release announcing that it had sent warning letters to operators of six websites that provide rental history reports to landlords for tenant screening purposes. The letters informed the website operators that they may be considered consumer reporting agencies (“CRAs”) subject to the requirements of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”).

Tags: Consumer Protection, Credit Report, Enforcement, FCRA, Federal Trade Commission, Information Security, Online Privacy

U.S. Court Finds National Security Letter Nondisclosure Provisions Unconstitutional

Posted on March 22, 2013 by Hunton & Williams LLP

On March 14, 2013, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California granted a motion to prohibit the government from issuing National Security Letters (“NSLs”) to electronic communication service providers (“ECSPs”) requesting “subscriber information” and enforcing nondisclosure clauses contained in such letters. The nondisclosure clauses are intended to prevent ECSPs from disclosing that they received an NSL. The court also held that the sections of two federal statutes relating to the nondisclosure provisions of NSLs, 18 U.S.C. §2709(c) and 18 U.S.C. §3511(b), (collectively, the “NSL Nondisclosure Statutes”) were unconstitutional because they violated the First Amendment as well as separation of powers principles. In light of the significant constitutional and national security implications, the court stayed enforcement of its judgment pending appeal to the Ninth Circuit, or for 90 days if no appeal is filed.

Tags: California, Consumer Protection, FCRA, Financial Privacy, Service Provider, U.S. Federal Law

FTC Study Reports on Inaccuracies in Consumer Credit Reports

Posted on February 13, 2013 by Hunton & Williams LLP

On February 11, 2013, the Federal Trade Commission announced that a congressionally-mandated study of the U.S. credit reporting industry found that 26 percent of consumers identified at least one error that might affect their credit score. The study reported that 5 percent of consumers had errors on their credit reports that could result in less favorable terms for loans and insurance.

Tags: Congress, Consumer Protection, Credit Report, FCRA, Federal Trade Commission, Financial Privacy, Obama

FTC Settlement Targets Mobile App Background Checks

Posted on January 16, 2013 by Hunton & Williams LLP

In a January 13, 2013 blog post, the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection’s Business Center Blog highlighted the FTC’s recent groundbreaking settlement for violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) in the mobile app context. The settlement with Filiquarian Publishing, LLC, Choice Level, LLC, and Joshua Linsk (the owner of Filiquarian and Choice Level, collectively, the “Companies”), is the first FCRA enforcement action against a mobile app developer. Filiquarian offered mobile apps to consumers for purposes of conducting criminal background checks in numerous states, and Choice Level provided the criminal background checks used by the apps to Filiquarian.

Tags: Consent Order, Consumer Protection, Credit Report, Enforcement, FCRA, Federal Trade Commission, Mobile App, Mobile Device, Workplace Privacy

Employers Must Update Notice Form Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act

Posted on December 28, 2012 by Hunton & Williams LLP

As reported in the Hunton Employment & Labor Perspectives Blog:

Beginning January 1, 2013, employers must issue an updated notice form to applicants and employees when using criminal background information under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Tags: Consumer Protection, Dodd-Frank Act, FCRA, Federal Trade Commission, Workplace Privacy

FTC Requests Information About Data Brokerage Companies’ Collection and Use of Personal Data

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Hunton & Williams LLP

On December 18, 2012, the Federal Trade Commission issued Orders to File Special Report (the “Orders”) to nine data brokerage companies, seeking information about how these companies collect and use personal data about consumers. In the Orders, the FTC requests detailed information about the data brokers’ privacy practices, including:

the data brokerage companies’ online and offline products and services that use personal data;
the sources and types of personal data the data brokerage companies collect;
whether, and how, the companies acquire consumer consent before obtaining, collecting, generating, deriving, disseminating or storing the personal data;
whether, and how, the personal data is aggregated, anonymized or de-identified;
how the companies monitor, audit or evaluate the accuracy of the personal data they obtain;
if, and how, consumers are able to access, correct, delete or opt out of the collection, use or sharing of the personal data the data brokerage companies maintain about the consumers;
how the data brokerage companies provide notice to consumers about their data privacy practices;
the advertisements or promotional materials the companies use to describe their products and services; and
information about any complaints or disputes, or governmental or regulatory inquiries or actions, related to the companies’ data privacy practices.

Tags: Advertisement, Anonymization, Behavioral Advertising, Congress, Consent, Consumer Protection, FCRA, Federal Trade Commission, Financial Privacy, Information Security, Marketing, Online Privacy, U.S. Federal Law

FTC Issues Interim Final Rule Amending Red Flags Rule “Creditor” Definition

Posted on December 4, 2012 by Hunton & Williams LLP

On November 30, 2012, the Federal Trade Commission announced the issuance of an interim final rule (“Interim Final Rule”) that makes the definition of “creditor” in the FTC’s Identity Theft Red Flags Rule (“Red Flags Rule”) consistent with the definition contained in the Red Flag Program Clarification Act of 2010.

Tags: Consumer Protection, FCRA, Federal Trade Commission, Financial Privacy, Identity Theft, Obama, Red Flags Rule

Privacy and Information Security Law Blog - Global privacy and information security law updates and analysis

FTC Sends Warning Letters to Data Brokers Regarding FCRA Violations

SEC and CFTC Adopt Rules on Red Flags and Identity Theft

FTC Sends FCRA Warning Letters to Tenant Rental History Websites

U.S. Court Finds National Security Letter Nondisclosure Provisions Unconstitutional

FTC Study Reports on Inaccuracies in Consumer Credit Reports

Employers Must Update Notice Form Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act

FTC Issues Interim Final Rule Amending Red Flags Rule “Creditor” Definition

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