Public Act 098-0486
 
HB3380 EnrolledLRB098 07663 JLS 37736 b


  
    AN ACT concerning business.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  

 
    Section 5. The Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business 
Practices Act is amended by changing Section 2MM as follows:
 


    (815 ILCS 505/2MM)


    Sec. 2MM. Verification of accuracy of consumer reporting 
information used to
extend consumers credit and security freeze 
on credit reports. 
    (a) A credit card issuer who mails an offer or solicitation 
to apply for a
credit card and who receives a completed 
application in response to the offer
or
solicitation which 
lists an address that is not substantially the same as the

address on the offer or solicitation may not issue a credit 
card based on that
application until reasonable steps have been 
taken to verify the applicant's
change of address.

    (b) Any person who uses a consumer credit report in 
connection with the
approval of credit based on the application 
for an extension of credit, and who
has received notification 
of a police report filed with a consumer reporting
agency that 
the applicant has been a victim of financial
identity theft, as 
defined in Section 16-30 or 16G-15 of the Criminal Code of 1961 
or the Criminal Code of 2012, may
not lend money or extend 
credit without taking reasonable steps to verify the
consumer's 
identity and confirm that the application for an extension of

credit
is not the result of financial identity theft.

    (c) A consumer may request that a security freeze be placed 
on his or her credit report by sending a request in writing by 
certified mail to a consumer reporting agency at an address 
designated by the consumer reporting agency to receive such 
requests.  
    The following persons may request that a security freeze be 
placed on the credit report of a disabled person:
        (1) a guardian of the disabled person that is the 
    subject of the request, appointed under Article XIa of the 
    Probate Act of 1975; and
        (2) an agent of the disabled person that is the subject 
    of the request, under a written durable power of attorney 
    that complies with Illinois Power of Attorney Act.
     The following persons may request that a security freeze 
be placed on the credit report of a minor:
        (1) a guardian of the minor that is the subject of the 
    request, appointed under Article XI of the Probate Act of 
    1975;
        (2) a parent of the minor that is the subject of the 
    request; and
        (3) a guardian appointed under the Juvenile Court Act 
    of 1987 for a minor under the age of 18 who is the subject 
    of the request or, with a court order authorizing the 
    guardian consent power, for a youth who is the subject of 
    the request who has attained the age of 18, but who is 
    under the age of 21. 
    This subsection (c) does not prevent a consumer reporting 
agency from advising a third party that a security freeze is in 
effect with respect to the consumer's credit report.


    (d) A consumer reporting agency shall place a security 
freeze on a consumer's credit report no later than 5 business 
days after receiving a written request from the consumer:


        (1) a written request described in subsection (c);
        (2) proper identification; and
        (3) payment of a fee, if applicable.

    (e) Upon placing the security freeze on the consumer's 
credit report, the consumer reporting agency shall send to the 
consumer within 10 business days a written confirmation of the 
placement of the security freeze and a unique personal 
identification number or password or similar device,  other than 
the consumer's Social Security number, to be used by the 
consumer when providing authorization for the release of his or 
her credit report for a specific party or period of time.

    (f) If the consumer wishes to allow his or her credit 
report to be accessed for a specific party or period of time 
while a freeze is in place, he or she shall contact the 
consumer reporting agency using a point of contact designated 
by the consumer reporting agency, request that the freeze be 
temporarily lifted, and provide the following:

        (1) Proper identification;

        (2) The unique personal identification number or 
    password or similar device provided by the consumer 
    reporting agency;

        (3) The proper information regarding the third party or 
    time period for which the report shall be available to 
    users of the credit report; and


        (4) A fee, if applicable.

    A security freeze for a minor may not be temporarily 
lifted. This Section does not require a consumer reporting 
agency to provide to a minor or a parent or guardian of a minor 
on behalf of the minor a unique personal identification number, 
password, or similar device provided by the consumer reporting 
agency for the minor, or parent or guardian of the minor, to 
use to authorize the consumer reporting agency to release 
information from a minor.
    (g) A consumer reporting agency shall develop a contact 
method to receive and process a request from a consumer to 
temporarily lift a freeze on a credit report pursuant to 
subsection (f) in an expedited manner.

    A contact method under this subsection shall include:

(i) a 
postal address; and (ii) an electronic contact method chosen by 
the consumer reporting agency, which may include the use of 
telephone, fax, Internet, or other electronic means.

    (h) A consumer reporting agency that receives a request 
from a consumer to temporarily lift a freeze on a credit report 
pursuant to subsection (f), shall comply with the request no 
later than 3 business days after receiving the request.

    (i) A consumer reporting agency shall remove or temporarily 
lift a freeze placed on a consumer's credit report only in the 
following cases:

        (1) upon consumer request, pursuant to subsection (f) 
    or subsection (l) of this Section; or

        (2) if the consumer's credit report was frozen due to a 
    material misrepresentation of fact by the consumer.

    If a consumer reporting agency intends to remove a freeze 
upon a consumer's credit report pursuant to this subsection, 
the consumer reporting agency shall notify the consumer in 
writing prior to removing the freeze on the consumer's credit 
report.

    (j) If a third party requests access to a credit report on 
which a security freeze is in effect, and this request is in 
connection with an application for credit or any other use, and 
the consumer does not allow his or her credit report to be 
accessed for that specific party or period of time, the third 
party may treat the application as incomplete.

    (k) If a consumer requests a security freeze, the credit 
reporting agency shall disclose to the consumer the process of 
placing and temporarily lifting a security freeze, and the 
process for allowing access to information from the consumer's 
credit report for a specific party or period of time while the 
freeze is in place.

    (l) A security freeze shall remain in place until the 
consumer or person authorized under subsection (c) to act on 
behalf of the minor or disabled person that is the subject of 
the security freeze requests, using a point of contact 
designated by the consumer reporting agency, that the security 
freeze be removed.  A credit reporting agency shall remove a 
security freeze within 3 business days of receiving a request 
for removal from the consumer, who provides:

        (1) Proper identification;

        (2) The unique personal identification number or 
    password or similar device provided by the consumer 
    reporting agency; and


        (3) A fee, if applicable.

    (m) A consumer reporting agency shall require proper 
identification of the person making a request to place or 
remove a security freeze and may require proper identification 
and proper authority from the person making the request to 
place or remove a freeze on behalf of the disabled person or 
minor.

    (n) The provisions of subsections (c) through (m) of this 
Section do not apply to the use of a consumer credit report by 
any of the following:

        (1) A person or entity, or a subsidiary, affiliate, or 
    agent of that person or entity, or an assignee of a 
    financial obligation owing by the consumer to that person 
    or entity, or a prospective assignee of a financial 
    obligation owing by the consumer to that person or entity 
    in conjunction with the proposed purchase of the financial 
    obligation, with which the consumer has or had prior to 
    assignment an account or contract, including a demand 
    deposit account, or to whom the consumer issued a 
    negotiable instrument, for the purposes of reviewing the 
    account or collecting the financial obligation owing for 
    the account, contract, or negotiable instrument.  For 
    purposes of this subsection, "reviewing the account" 
    includes activities related to account maintenance, 
    monitoring, credit line increases, and account upgrades 
    and enhancements.

        (2) A subsidiary, affiliate, agent, assignee, or 
    prospective assignee of a person to whom access has been 
    granted under subsection (f) of this Section for purposes 
    of facilitating the extension of credit or other 
    permissible use.

        (3) Any state or local agency, law enforcement agency, 
    trial court, or private collection agency acting pursuant 
    to a court order, warrant, or subpoena.

        (4) A child support agency acting pursuant to Title 
    IV-D of the Social Security Act.

        (5) The State or its agents or assigns acting to 
    investigate fraud.

        (6) The Department of Revenue or its agents or assigns 
    acting to investigate or collect delinquent taxes or unpaid 
    court orders or to fulfill any of its other statutory 
    responsibilities.

        (7) The use of credit information for the purposes of 
    prescreening as provided for by the federal Fair Credit 
    Reporting Act.

        (8) Any person or entity administering a credit file 
    monitoring subscription or similar service to which the 
    consumer has subscribed.

        (9) Any person or entity for the purpose of providing a 
    consumer with a copy of his or her credit report or score 
    upon the consumer's request.

        (10) Any person using the information in connection 
    with the underwriting of insurance.

    (n-5) This Section does not prevent a consumer reporting 
agency from charging a fee of no more than $10 to a consumer 
for each freeze, removal, or temporary lift of the freeze, 
regarding access to a consumer credit report, except that a 
consumer reporting agency may not charge a fee to (i) a 
consumer 65 years of age or over for placement and removal of a 
freeze, or (ii) a victim of identity theft who has submitted to 
the consumer reporting agency a valid copy of a police report, 
investigative report, or complaint that the consumer has filed 
with a law enforcement agency about unlawful use of his or her 
personal information by another person.

    (o) If a security freeze is in place, a consumer reporting 
agency shall not change any of the following official 
information in a credit report without sending a written 
confirmation of the change to the consumer within 30 days of 
the change being posted to the consumer's file: (i) name, (ii) 
date of birth, (iii) Social Security number, and (iv) address.  
Written confirmation is not required for technical 
modifications of a consumer's official information, including 
name and street abbreviations, complete spellings, or 
transposition of numbers or letters.  In the case of an address 
change, the written confirmation shall be sent to both the new 
address and to the former address.

    (p) The following entities are not required to place a 
security freeze in a consumer report, however, pursuant to 
paragraph (3) of this subsection, a consumer reporting agency 
acting as a reseller shall honor any security freeze placed on 
a consumer credit report by another consumer reporting agency:


        (1) A check services or fraud prevention services 
    company, which issues reports on incidents of fraud or 
    authorizations for the purpose of approving or processing 
    negotiable instruments, electronic funds transfers, or 
    similar methods of payment.

        (2) A deposit account information service company, 
    which issues reports regarding account closures due to 
    fraud, substantial overdrafts, ATM abuse, or similar 
    negative information regarding a consumer to inquiring 
    banks or other financial institutions for use only in 
    reviewing a consumer request for a deposit account at the 
    inquiring bank or financial institution.

        (3) A consumer reporting agency that:

            (A) acts only to resell credit information by 
        assembling and merging information contained in a 
        database of one or more consumer reporting agencies; 
        and

            (B) does not maintain a permanent database of 
        credit information from which new credit reports are 
        produced.

    (q) For purposes of this Section:
    "Credit report" has the same meaning as "consumer report", 
as ascribed to it in 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1681a(d).
    "Consumer reporting agency" has the meaning ascribed to it 
in 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1681a(f).
    "Security freeze" means
a notice placed in a consumer's 
credit report, at the request of the consumer and subject to 
certain exceptions, that prohibits the consumer reporting 
agency from releasing the consumer's credit report or score 
relating to an extension of credit, without the express 
authorization of the consumer.

     "Extension of credit" does not include
an increase in an 
existing open-end credit plan, as defined in Regulation Z of

the Federal Reserve System (12 C.F.R. 226.2), or any change to 
or review of an
existing credit account.

    "Proper authority" means documentation that shows that a 
parent, guardian, or agent has authority to act on behalf of a 
minor or disabled person. "Proper authority" includes (1) an 
order issued by a court of law that shows that a guardian has 
authority to act on behalf of a minor or disabled person, (2) a 
written, notarized statement signed by a parent that expressly 
describes the authority of the parent to act on behalf of the 
minor, or (3) a durable power of attorney that complies with 
the Illinois Power of Attorney Act. 
    "Proper identification" means information generally deemed 
sufficient to identify a person.  Only if the consumer is unable 
to reasonably identify himself or herself with the information 
described above, may a consumer reporting agency require 
additional information concerning the consumer's employment 
and personal or family history in order to verify his or her 
identity.

    (r) Any person who violates this Section commits an

unlawful practice within the meaning of this Act.

(Source: P.A. 97-597, eff. 1-1-12; 97-1150, eff. 1-25-13.)