TransUnion’s longstanding position as a leading provider of risk and information solutions, coupled with their operating history spanning fifty years, has led to them implementing cutting-edge big data and analytics technologies, expanding the breadth and depth of data, and strengthening analytics capabilities.
TransUnion has its headquarters in Chicago, Illinois, and offers a variety of services including credit reports, risk scores, analytics, and credit-decision capabilities to businesses across the globe. Data consumers then use these products, services, and tools to acquire access to their credit data and utilize tools to analyze personal financial data in the hopes of helping them to better safeguard their identity.
WHAT DOES TRANSUNION DO
TransUnion provides organizations and consumers with risk and information solutions throughout the world. However, they also provide organizations with a range of services including consumer reports, risk ratings, and analytics. In order to acquire new customers, businesses embed TransUnion-provided solutions into their process workflows whereupon, they assess the ability of their customers to pay for services. They also identify cross-selling opportunities; collect a debt, identify fraudulent activities, and investigate possible problems.
Customers utilize these products to investigate their credit histories and obtain understanding and management over their personal information. TransUnion attempts to distinguish itself by its unique datasets, next-generation technology, and analytics and decision skills, which can provide consumers with all of their relevant information. As part of the Big Three, TransUnion provides a comprehensive nationwide provider of risk and information solutions that possess both comprehensive public records data as well as nationwide consumer credit data, which has been used to better predict behaviors, assess risk, and serve a larger number of business issues for our customers.
The addressable market consists of big data and analytics industries, which are on the rise due to the recognition by large corporations around the world of the value that data and analytics bring when employed as part of an analytical enterprise. This also coincides with a rising public recognition of the value data and analytics bring in a consumer’s ability to acquire goods and services and protect their personal information. New and improved data-processing and analytics technology allow companies to collect, analyze, and make use of more data faster and more effectively, thereby creating more opportunities for businesses to get valuable insights.
HOW HAS TRANSUNION EVOLVED OVERTIME
The foundation of TransUnion’s solutions is based on a variety of financial, credit, alternative credit, identity, bankruptcy, lien, judgment, insurance claims, healthcare, and automotive records data from multiple data sources, including financial institutions, private databases, and public records repositories.
Businesses use a software-as-a-service platform to get the decision skills they need. With this combined data, analytics, and decision skills, organizations can verify their customers, decide the items their customers are interested in, keep customers who already have the product, attract new customers, and cut down on fraud. Consequently, our capabilities enable customers to observe how their credit profiles have evolved over time, grasp the influence of financial actions on their credit scores, save personal information securely, and manage their identity and identity theft risks.
The acquisition of the Credit Bureau of Cook County in 1968 by the Union Tank Car Company resulted in the acquisition of over three million credit accounts in the greater Chicago area. Until recently, TransUnion was a completely different type of firm from Equifax and Experian, since it was private and not listed on any stock market. Due to the firm becoming public in 2015, TransUnion has since traded on the NASDAQ as TRU.
Credit information stored by TransUnion is used to provide credit ratings to consumers. Credit monitoring services include daily credit-score updates, credit suggestions, and online credit locks for customers who want their credit information as real-time as possible.
HOW DOES TRANSUNION MANAGE DATA ON PUBLIC RECORD
TransUnion provides free identity theft protection, financial calculators, and credit offers in addition to monitoring services according to Chicago Illinois Process Service requirements. Its consumer support service can assist customers who have issues including disputed orders, credit freezes, fraud warnings, and support for military people who are serving overseas.
Public record items are gathered from various public record sources, such as court records, and are reported by TransUnion in accordance with Chicago Illinois Process Service guidelines. A public record item appears on the TransUnion credit report and the customer is often compelled to clarify it with future creditors, employers, and insurance providers. While TransUnion usually retains third-party vendors to gather this public record information and then transfer it to TransUnion for incorporation on consumer credit reports, most public record information comes from official sources.
TransUnion retrieved data on the customer’s bankruptcy from a third-party provider, LexisNexis, for public records going back to November 30, 2018. TransUnion had been using a third-party vendor called LCI to gather information about the customer’s bankruptcy after November 30, 2018.
HOW TO REFUTE INFORMATION INCLUDED IN THE PUBLIC RECORD ON THE TRANSUNION CREDIT REPORT
The Fair Credit Reporting Act grants the right to challenge incorrect information in the credit report, for which the customer will not be charged a fee for lodging a dispute. This prohibits Consumer Reporting Agencies, such as TransUnion, from issuing credit reports unless a permissible purpose exists. While the FCRA allows the issuance of a consumer report in response to a court order, the Federal Trade Commission, which is responsible for enforcing the FCRA, has ruled that a subpoena is not a court order; and to produce a consumer credit report in response to a subpoena would be a violation of federal law and outside the reach of Chicago Illinois Process Service guidelines.
TransUnion would be able to provide the individual with the credit reports requested if they obtain a court order, the consent of the consumer who is the subject of the report, or they can demonstrate another permissible purpose as set forth in the statute complying with Chicago Illinois Process Service. The permissible purpose is defined in Section 604 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).
Any consumer reporting agency may furnish a consumer report in response to the order of a court having jurisdiction to issue such an order or a subpoena issued in connection with proceedings before a Federal grand jury complying with the requirements of Chicago Illinois Process Service. This would also be in accordance with the written instructions of the consumer to whom it relates. Further, the intention of the individuals who are using the information is important, wherein it is important that third parties intend to use the information in connection with a credit transaction involving the consumer on whom the information is to be furnished and involving the extension of credit to, or review or collection of an account of, the consumer or for employment purposes.
This credit information may be used even to underwrite insurance for the consumer or for a determination of the consumer’s eligibility for a license or other benefit granted by a governmental instrumentality required by law to consider an applicant’s financial responsibility or status. Furthermore, in their capacity as an investor or servicer with regard to an existing credit obligation or in furtherance of a legitimate business need for the information, the credit report has data furnished in connection with [A.] a business transaction that is initiated by the consumer; or [B.[ to review an account to determine whether the consumer continues to meet the terms of the account.
REQUIRED DISCLOSURE TO CONSUMER
A consumer report should not be procured for the purpose of employment without the accompanying disclosure to the consumer done in compliance with Chicago Illinois Process Service necessities. This falls under the category of investigative consumer reports. Investigative consumer reports are a special type of consumer report in which information about a consumer’s character, general reputation, personal characteristics, and mode of living is obtained through personal interviews by an entity or person that is a consumer reporting agency. Consumers who are the subject of such reports are given special rights under the FCRA.
Consequently, the mandated disclosure must be clear and conspicuous and done in writing to the consumer well before the report is procured in order to comply with Chicago Illinois Process Service regulations. A further requirement to the consumer is that the document communicating this use of the report must be dedicated solely to the disclosure, with accompanying consumer authorization done in writing.
Application by mail, telephone, computer, or other similar means may be done. If a consumer applies for employment by mail, telephone, a computer at any time before a consumer report is procured in connection with that application, the person who procures the consumer report on the consumer for employment purposes must provide notice to the consumer following rules of Chicago Illinois Process Service. Notice by oral, written, or electronic means can ensure that a consumer report may be obtained for employment purposes, and a summary of the consumer’s rights under section 615(a)(3) and the consumer shall have consented, orally, in writing, or electronically to the procurement of the report by that person to adhere to these rules of Chicago Illinois Process Service.
The credit-reporting agencies allow the consumer to dispute errors online, by phone, or through the mail. If the error is serious, the consumer should write a letter and send it via certified mail
CONDITIONS ON USE FOR ADVERSE ACTIONS
In using a consumer report for employment purposes, before taking any adverse action based on the report, the person intending to take such adverse action should provide to the subject consumer [A.] a copy of the report; and [B.] a description in writing of the rights of the consumer to adhere to Chicago Illinois Process Service obligations. The term “adverse action” is defined very and usually, includes all business, credit, and employment actions affecting consumers that can be considered to have a negative impact— such as denying or canceling credit or insurance, or denying employment or promotion. No adverse action occurs in a credit transaction where the creditor makes a counteroffer that is accepted by the consumer.
If a consumer applies for employment by mail, telephone, computer, and if a person who has procured a consumer report on the consumer for employment purposes takes adverse action on the employment application based in whole or in part on the report, then the person must provide to the consumer Chicago Illinois Process Service notice within three business days of taking such action, an oral, written or electronic notification that adverse action has been taken based in on a consumer report received from a consumer reporting agency. This notice must comprise the name, address, and telephone number of the consumer reporting agency that furnished the consumer report and should specify that the consumer reporting agency did not make the decision to take the adverse action and is unable to provide to the consumer the specific reasons why the adverse action was taken to adhere to the requisites of Chicago Illinois Process Service. The notice should additionally provide that the consumer may, upon providing proper identification, request a free copy of a report and may dispute with the consumer reporting agency the accuracy or completeness of any information in a report.
The information must be provided when requesting credit reports for criminal investigations, each request including the[A.] investigator’s name and rank. [B.] investigator’s return address and fax number, [C.[ the customer’s complete name (including maiden name), [D.] the customer’s last known address, date of birth, and Social Security number to observe Chicago Illinois Process Service conditions. If the case requires an immediate response, contact TransUnion at the designated phone number, or via email, indicating an immediate response is requested.
COURT RULINGS AND JUDGEMENTS
A credit provider might take further action by requesting a court ruling. An individual might be involved in a judgment when the court issues a legal summons and they fail to respond or pay the amount demanded. Any judgment a consumer has ever received or been accused of having will be recorded on their credit report for the next five years, or until the judgment is paid in full or rescinded by the courts.
The majority of the time, when a customer defaults on a credit account, the customer has also indicated that they want the debt settled before a credit provider files for a judgment. When a customer has gone behind on their payments and fails to reply to reminder letters, credit companies prefer to ask for a judgment, especially if they have not been adhering to an agreement on payments. A judgment will be entered in the absence of the defendant if they fail to respond to the summons, contact the credit provider, or negotiate an agreement with the credit provider.
If the consumer can pay the defaults and judgments upfront, they may delete their defaults and judgments with the assistance of a credit bureau like TransUnion. Generally, after these payments are complete, the alerts will be withdrawn. The slower and more painstaking this procedure is, the more expeditious one may make it by filing a dispute with the credit bureau. To be considered for acceptance, the consumer must present the original letter of credit issued by the credit provider that placed them on the list in the first place.
If the disagreement arises, it will be recorded with the credit provider that created the adverse listing, so that it may be verified. This procedure must follow the law and may take up to twenty working days. People should exercise care since this procedure is prone to disputes. If the dispute is determined to be invalid, it is noted on the customer’s credit report for a year.
A big element of keeping digital identification secure is ensuring that the customer’s credit information is kept up to date and protected. To dispute outdated or inaccurate accounts, one should search for an account that has been paid in full or for an account that should not be on the report. Errors may have been made. While inaccuracies are not always harmful, it is critical that the report is an accurate representation of the customer’s credit history. It must be known that for disputing inaccuracies, providing evidence of supporting documents should include copies rather than originals, especially if the documents comprise police reports and handwriting samples.
Court orders, subpoenas, or search warrants signed by a judge seeking consumer credit reports should be made out to the right TransUnion entity, even if submitted via fax or email for adequate Chicago Illinois Process Service conformity.
A recent jury decision in a Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) case resulted in a significant award being issued against TransUnion, as a jury concluded that TransUnion’s credit reporting confuses class names like Jane Doe and John Smith with names of potential terrorists on a government watch list. Over five years after Mr. Ramirez, the primary plaintiff in the litigation, sued TransUnion claiming breaches of the FCRA, the class was granted over sixty million dollars in statutory and punitive damages, the largest FCRA settlement in history.
The jury decided against TransUnion in less than six hours. In conclusion, the court determined that TransUnion had violated the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act by improperly following proper procedures for verifying the accuracy of OFAC information and by wilfully failing to provide class members with a summary of their FCRA rights with each written disclosure.
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Sources
1. TransUnion agreed to stop reporting civil judgments, state tax liens, and federal tax liens on credit reports and would not reinstate publishing those public record items on credit reports until January 1, 2020, at the earliest due to their renewed standards for the collection of public record information according to the National Consumer Assistance Plan. www.TUPublicRecordSettlement.com
2.LexisNexis Consumer Center
P. O. Box 105615
Atlanta, GA 30348-5108
3. Information about TransUnion Consumer Credit Reports Verisk Financial LCI – Bankruptcy Management Solutions, http://www.lciinc.com/transunionconsumers/ (last visited Jun 2021)
4. Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.s.C. 1681,
5. A Brief Overview of the Federal Trade Commission’s Investigative, Law Enforcement, and Rulemaking Authority Federal Trade Commission, https://www.ftc.gov/about-ftc/what-we-do/enforcement-authority (last visited Jun 2021)
6. 15 U.S. Code § 1681b – Permissible purposes of consumer reports
7. Certification from user.
A consumer reporting agency may furnish a consumer report for employment purposes only if the person who obtains such report from the agency certifies to the agency that information from the consumer report will not be used in violation of any applicable Federal or State equal employment opportunity law or regulation; and the consumer reporting agency provides with the report, or has previously provided, a summary of the consumer’s rights under this title, as prescribed by the Federal Trade Commission under section 609(c)(3) [§ 1681g].
8. As prescribed by the Federal Trade Commission under section 609(c)(3
9. As defined by Section 603(k) of the FCRA
10. Under section 615(a) of the FCRA
11. This report is including a toll-free telephone number established by the agency if the agency compiles and maintains files on consumers on a nationwide basis
12. Phone Number: 312-466-7356
13. Email at subpoenamail@transunion.com
14. In 2003, a Portland, Ore., jury ordered TransUnion to pay Judy Thomas of Klamath Falls, Ore., $5.3 million. A federal judge later reduced the award to $1 million. In her lawsuit, Thomas said she spent six years trying to get TransUnion to remove another woman’s credit information from her credit report
15. 555 West Adams Street,
Chicago, Illinois
60661.
16. Submitted via fax at 312-985-2030
17. Via email at subpoenamail@transunion.com
18. TransUnion hit with $60 million jury verdict over blacklist alerts Reuters, https://www.reuters.com/article/transunion-verdict-idUSL1N1JI1ZA (last visited Jun 2021)
