Equifax Reaches Settlement on Charges of Selling Consumer Information

""Equifax"":http://www.equifax.com/advantage495/PSbr/?CID=2&equifax_G_E&gclid=CKb8-KyT97ICFSOnPAodyAwAHA and its customers reached separate settlements with the ""FTC,"":http://www.ftc.gov/index.shtml agreeing to pay a total of $1.6 million for improper sale of consumer credit information.

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The FTC alleges Equifax sold more than 17,000 lists of people who met specific criteria, such as being late on their mortgage payments. Equifax is said to have sold the lists to Direct Lending Source, Inc., which in turn sold the lists to other third parties.

The lists included information such as credit scores and detailed how many days past due consumers' mortgage payments were.

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Equifax and Direct Lending Source allegedly violated the FTC Act and the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the FTC stated in a ""press release"":http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2012/10/equifaxdirect.shtm Wednesday.

Equifax ""failed to properly investigate when it learned Direct Lending was violating Equifax's internal policies on prescreening,"" according to the FTC.

Equifax has agreed to pay $393,000. However, ""Equifax did not├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔé¼┬Ø_and does not_├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔé¼┬Øadmit to any wrongdoing or violation of any law as part of this agreement,"" a spokesperson for Equifax told DSNews.com.

Additionally, Equifax said it ""discontinued all business interactions with Direct Lending and its affiliates during the summer of 2011.""

The FTC alleges Direct Lending obtained prescreened lists without ""permissible purpose,"" resold the reports ""without disclosing to the consumer reporting agency that provided them who the end users would be, and ""failing to employ appropriate measures to control access to sensitive consumer financial information.""

Direct Lending will pay $1.2 million and has agreed not to use consumer reports ""without a permissible purpose.""