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Title VIII — Protections against identity theft, fraud, or a related crime

H.R. 3621 · 116th Congress · Jan 30, 2020 · Lineage

VIII Protections against identity theft, fraud, or a related crime

Sec. 801 Identity theft report definition

(a)
In general— Paragraph (4) of section 603(q) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681a(q)(4)) is amended to read as follows:

“(4) Identity theft report—The term identity theft report has the meaning given that term by rule of the Bureau, and means, at a minimum, a report—

“(A) that is a standardized affidavit that alleges that a consumer has been a victim of identity theft, fraud, or a related crime, or has been harmed by the unauthorized disclosure of the consumer’s financial or personally identifiable information, that was developed and made available by the Bureau; or

“(B)

“(i) that alleges an identity theft, fraud, or a related crime, or alleges harm from the unauthorized disclosure of the consumer’s financial or personally identifiable information;

“(ii) that is a copy of an official, valid report filed by a consumer with an appropriate Federal, State, or local law enforcement agency (including the United States Postal Inspection Service), or such other government agency deemed appropriate by the Bureau; and

“(iii) the filing of which subjects the person filing the report to criminal penalties relating to the filing of false information if the information in the report is actually false.”

(b)
Rulemaking— Not later than the end of the 2-year period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection shall issue final rules to carry out the amendment made by subsection (a).

Sec. 802 Amendment to protection for files and credit records of protected consumers

(a)
Amendment to definition of “file”— Section 603(g) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681a(g)) is amended by inserting “, except that such term excludes a record created pursuant to section 605A(j)” after “stored”.
(b)
Amendment to protection for files and credit records— Section 605A(j) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681c–1(j)) is amended—
(1)
in paragraph (1)—
(A)
in subparagraph (B)(ii), by striking “an incapacitated person or a protected person” and inserting “a person”; and
(B)
by amending subparagraph (E) to read as follows:

“(E) The term security freeze—

“(i) has the meaning given in subsection (i)(1)(C); and

“(ii) with respect to a protected consumer for whom the consumer reporting agency does not have a file, means a record that is subject to a security freeze that a consumer reporting agency is prohibited from disclosing to any person requesting the consumer report for the purpose of opening a new account involving the extension of credit.”

(2)
in paragraph (4)(D), by striking “a protected consumer or a protected consumer’s representative under subparagraph (A)(i)” and inserting “a protected consumer described under subparagraph (A)(ii) or a protected consumer’s representative”.

Sec. 803 Enhancement to fraud alert protections

Section 605A of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681c–1) is amended—
(1)
in subsection (a)—
(A)
in the subsection heading, by striking “One-Call” and inserting “1-Year”;
(B)
in paragraph (1)—
(i)
in the paragraph heading, by striking “Initial alerts” and inserting “In general”;
(ii)
by inserting “or has been or is about to be harmed by the unauthorized disclosure of the consumer’s financial or personally identifiable information,” after “identity theft,”;
(iii)
in subparagraph (A)—
(I)
by inserting “(which period may be extended upon request of the consumer or such representative)” after “1 year”; and
(II)
by striking “and” at the end;
(iv)
in subparagraph (B)—
(I)
by inserting “1-year” before “fraud alert”; and
(II)
by striking the period at the end and inserting “; and”; and
(v)
by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:

“(C) upon the expiration of the period described in subparagraph (A) or any extension of such period, and in response to a direct request by the consumer or such representative, continue the fraud alert for a period of 1 additional year if the information asserted in this paragraph remains applicable.”

(C)
in paragraph (2)—
(i)
in the paragraph heading, by inserting “and credit or educational credit scores” after “reports”;
(ii)
by inserting “1-year” before “fraud alert”;
(iii)
in subparagraph (A), by inserting “and credit score or educational credit score” after “file”; and
(iv)
in subparagraph (B), by striking “any request described in subparagraph (A)” and inserting “the consumer reporting agency includes the 1-year fraud alert in the file of a consumer”;
(2)
in subsection (b)—
(A)
in the subsection heading, by striking “Extended” and inserting “7-Year”;
(B)
in paragraph (1)—
(i)
in subparagraph (A), by inserting “(which period may be extended upon request of the consumer or such representative)” after “7-year period beginning on the date of such request”;
(ii)
in subparagraph (B)—
(I)
by striking “the 5-year period beginning on the date of such request” and inserting “such 7-year period (including any extension of such period)”; and
(II)
by striking “and” at the end;
(iii)
in subparagraph (C)—
(I)
by striking “extended” and inserting “7-year”; and
(II)
by striking the period at the end and inserting “; and”; and
(iv)
by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:

“(D) upon the expiration of such 7-year period or any extension of such period, and in response to a direct request by the consumer or such representative, continue the fraud alert for a period of 7 additional years if the consumer or such representative submits an updated identity theft report.”

(C)
in paragraph (2)—
(i)
in the paragraph heading, by inserting “and credit or educational credit scores” after “reports”; and
(ii)
by amending subparagraph (A) to read as follows:

“(A) disclose to the consumer that the consumer may request a free copy of the file and credit score or educational credit score of the consumer pursuant to section 612(d) during each 12-month period beginning on the date on which the 7-year fraud alert was included in the file and ending on the date of the last day that the 7-year fraud alert applies to the consumer’s file; and”

(3)
in subsection (c)—
(A)
in paragraph (1), by inserting “or educational credit score” after “credit score”;
(B)
by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), and (3), as subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C), respectively (and conforming the margins accordingly);
(C)
by striking “Upon the direct request” and inserting:

“(1) In general—Upon the direct request”

(D)
by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

“(2) Access to free reports and credit or educational credit scores—If a consumer reporting agency includes an active duty alert in the file of an active duty uniformed consumer, the consumer reporting agency shall—

“(A) disclose to the active duty uniformed consumer that the active duty uniformed consumer may request a free copy of the file and credit score or educational credit score of the active duty uniformed consumer pursuant to section 612(d), during each 12-month period beginning on the date that the activity duty alert is requested and ending on the date of the last day the active duty alert applies to the file of the active duty uniformed consumer; and

“(B) provide to the active duty uniformed consumer all disclosures required to be made under section 609, without charge to the consumer, not later than 3 business days after any request described in subparagraph (A).”

(4)
by amending subsection (d) to read as follows:

“(d) Procedures—Each consumer reporting agency described in section 603(p) shall include on the webpage required under subsection (i) policies and procedures to comply with this section, including policies and procedures—

“(1) that inform consumers of the availability of 1-year fraud alerts, 7-year fraud alerts, active duty alerts, and security freezes (as applicable);

“(2) that allow consumers to request 1-year fraud alerts, 7-year fraud alerts, and active duty alerts (as applicable) and to place, temporarily lift, or fully remove a security freeze in a simple and easy manner; and

“(3) for asserting in good faith a suspicion that the consumer has been or is about to become a victim of identity theft, fraud, or a related crime, or harmed by the unauthorized disclosure of the consumer’s financial or personally identifiable information, for a consumer seeking a 1-year fraud alert or security freeze.”

(5)
in subsection (e), by inserting “1-year or 7-year” before “fraud alert”;
(6)
in subsection (f), by striking “or active duty alert” and inserting “active duty alert, or security freeze (as applicable)”;
(7)
in subsection (g)—
(A)
by inserting “or has been harmed by the unauthorized disclosure of the consumer’s financial or personally identifiable information, or to inform such agency of the consumer’s participation in credit restoration or rehabilitation under section 605C, 605D, or 605E,” after “identity theft,”; and
(B)
by inserting “or security freezes” after “request alerts”;
(8)
in subsection (h)—
(A)
in paragraph (1)—
(i)
in the paragraph heading, by striking “initial” and inserting “1-year”; and
(ii)
by striking “initial” and inserting “1-year” each place such term appears; and
(B)
in paragraph (2)—
(i)
in the paragraph heading, by striking “extended” and inserting “7-year”; and
(ii)
by striking “extended” and inserting “7-year” each place such term appears; and
(9)
in subsection (i)(4)—
(A)
by striking subparagraphs (E) and (I); and
(B)
by redesignating subparagraphs (F), (G), (H), and (J) as subparagraphs (E), (F), (G), and (H), respectively.

Sec. 804 Amendment to security freezes for consumer reports

(a)
In general— Section 605A(i) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681c–1(i)) is amended—
(1)
by amending the subsection heading to read as follows: “Security freezes for consumer reports”;
(2)
in paragraph (3)(E), by striking “Upon receiving” and all that follows through “subparagraph (C),” and inserting “Upon receiving a direct request from a consumer for a temporary removal of a security freeze, a consumer reporting agency shall”;
(3)
by adding at the end the following:

“(7) Relation to State law—This subsection does not modify or supersede the laws of any State relating to security freezes or other similar actions, except to the extent those laws are inconsistent with any provision of this title, and then only to the extent of the inconsistency. For purposes of this subsection, a term or provision of a State law is not inconsistent with the provisions of this subsection if the term or provision affords greater protection to the consumer than the protection provided under this subsection as determined by the Bureau.”

(b)
Amendment to webpage requirements— Section 605A(i)(6)(A) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681c–1(i)(6)(A)) is amended—
(1)
in clause (ii), by striking “initial fraud alert” and inserting “1-year fraud alert”;
(2)
in clause (iii), by striking “extended fraud alert” and inserting “7-year fraud alert”; and
(3)
in clause (iv), by striking “fraud”.
(c)
Amendment to exceptions for certain persons— Section 605A(i)(4)(A) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681c–1(i)(4)(A)) is amended to read as follows:

“(A) A person, or the person’s subsidiary, affiliate, agent, subcontractor, or assignee with whom the consumer has, or prior to assignment had, an authorized account, contract, or debtor-creditor relationship for the purposes of reviewing the active account or collecting the financial obligation owed on the account, contract, or debt.”

(d)
Effective date— The amendments made by subsection (a) shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.

Sec. 805 Clarification of information to be included with agency disclosures

Section 609(c)(2) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681g(c)(2)) is amended—
(1)
in subparagraph (B)—
(A)
by striking “consumer reporting agency described in section 603(p)” and inserting “consumer reporting agency described in subsection (p) or (x) of section 603”;
(B)
by striking “the agency” and inserting “such an agency”; and
(C)
by inserting “and an Internet website address” after “hours”; and
(2)
in subparagraph (E), by striking “outdated under section 605 or” and inserting “outdated, required to be removed, or”.

Sec. 806 Provides access to fraud records for victims

Section 609(e) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681g(e)) is amended—
(1)
in paragraph (1)—
(A)
by striking “resulting from identity theft”;
(B)
by striking “claim of identity theft” and inserting “claim of fraudulent activity”; and
(C)
by striking “any transaction alleged to be a result of identity theft” and inserting “any fraudulent transaction”;
(2)
in paragraph (2)(B)—
(A)
by striking “identity theft, at the election of the business entity” and inserting “fraudulent activity”;
(B)
by amending clause (i) to read as follows:

“(i) a copy of an identity theft report; or”

(C)
by amending clause (ii) to read as follows:

“(ii) an affidavit of fact that is acceptable to the business entity for that purpose.”

(3)
in paragraph (3), by striking “identity theft” and inserting “fraudulent activity”;
(4)
by striking paragraph (8) and redesignating paragraphs (9) through (13) as paragraphs (8) through (12), respectively; and
(5)
in paragraph (10) (as so redesignated), by striking “or a similar crime” and inserting “, fraud, or a related crime”.

Sec. 807 Required Bureau to set procedures for reporting identity theft, fraud, and other related crime

Section 621(f)(2) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681s(f)(2)) is amended—
(1)
in the paragraph heading, by striking “Model form” and inserting “Standardized affidavit”;
(2)
by striking “The Commission” and inserting “The Bureau”;
(3)
by striking “model form” and inserting “standardized affidavit”;
(4)
by inserting after “identity theft” the following: “, fraud, or a related crime, or otherwise are harmed by the unauthorized disclosure of the consumer’s financial or personally identifiable information,”; and
(5)
by striking “fraud.” and inserting “identity theft, fraud, or other related crime. Such standardized affidavit and procedures shall not include a requirement that a consumer obtain a police report.”.

Sec. 808 Establishes the right to free credit monitoring and identity theft protection services for certain consumers

(a)
Enforcement of credit monitoring for servicemembers—
(1)
In general— Subsection (k) of section 605A (15 U.S.C. 1681c–1(a)) is amended by striking paragraph (4).
(2)
Effective date— This subsection and the amendment made by this subsection shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.
(b)
Free credit monitoring and identity theft protection services for certain consumers— Subsection (k) of section 605A (15 U.S.C. 1681c–1), is amended to read as follows:

“(k) Credit monitoring and identity theft protection services

“(1) In general—Upon the direct request of a consumer, a consumer reporting agency described in section 603(p) that maintains a file on the consumer and has received appropriate proof of the identity of the requester (as described in section 1022.123 of title 12, Code of Federal Regulations) shall provide the consumer with credit monitoring and identity theft protection services not later than 1 business day after receiving such request sent by postal mail, toll-free telephone, or secure electronic means as established by the agency.

“(2) Fees

“(A) Classes of consumers—The Bureau may establish classes of consumers eligible to receive credit monitoring and identity theft protection services free of charge.

“(B) No fee—A consumer reporting agency described in section 603(p) may not charge a consumer a fee to receive credit monitoring and identity theft protection services if the consumer or a representative of the consumer—

“(i) asserts in good faith a suspicion that the consumer has been or is about to become a victim of identity theft, fraud, or a related crime, or harmed by the unauthorized disclosure of the consumer’s financial or personally identifiable information;

“(ii) is unemployed and intends to apply for employment in the 60-day period beginning on the date on which the request is made;

“(iii) is a recipient of public welfare assistance;

“(iv) is an active duty uniformed consumer or a member of the National Guard (as defined in section 101(c) of title 10, United States Code);

“(v) is 65 years of age or older; or

“(vi) is a member of a class established by the Bureau under subparagraph (A).

“(3) Bureau rulemaking—The Bureau shall issue regulations—

“(A) to define the scope of credit monitoring and identity theft protection services required under this subsection; and

“(B) to set a fair and reasonable fee that a consumer reporting agency may charge a consumer (other than a consumer described under paragraph (2)(B)) for such credit monitoring and identity theft protection services.

“(4) Relation to State law—This subsection does not modify or supersede of the laws of any State relating to credit monitoring and identity theft protection services or other similar actions, except to the extent those laws are inconsistent with any provision of this title, and then only to the extent of the inconsistency. For purposes of this subsection, a term or provision of a State law is not inconsistent with the provisions of this subsection if the term or provision affords greater protection to the consumer than the protection provided under this subsection as determined by the Bureau.”

(c)
Rulemaking— Not later than the end of the 2-year period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection shall issue final rules to carry out the amendment made by subsection (b).

Sec. 809 Ensures removal of inquiries resulting from identity theft, fraud, or other related crime from consumer reports

Section 605(a) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681c(a)), as amended by section 403, is further amended by adding at the end the following:

“(17) Information about inquiries made for a credit report based on requests that the consumer reporting agency verifies were initiated as the result of identity theft, fraud, or other related crime.”