Experian Consumer Services paid $650,000 over millions of commercial emails sent without required opt-out mechanisms

Summary

The U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission brought a case against ConsumerInfo.com, doing business as Experian Consumer Services, concerning commercial marketing emails sent to consumers. The government alleged violations of the federal CAN-SPAM Act, CAN-SPAM Rule and Federal Trade Commission Act. The case involved consumers who had created free Experian accounts that allowed them to control third-party access to their credit reports, including freezing or unfreezing their credit files. According to the government's complaint, Experian subsequently sent these account holders millions of commercial emails promoting additional Experian products and services. The emails included messages asking consumers to confirm whether a vehicle associated with their account belonged to them, promotions for services intended to boost credit scores, and advertisements for free dark-web scans. The government alleged that these commercial emails did not tell recipients that they could opt out of receiving future marketing emails and did not provide the opt-out mechanism required by federal law. The complaint also alleged that some of the emails implied that they contained important information concerning consumers' Experian accounts even though the messages were commercial marketing communications. DOJ said the government received numerous consumer complaints about the absence of an unsubscribe mechanism. Experian agreed to a permanent injunction prohibiting it from sending commercial emails without the required opt-out notice and mechanism. The federal court also imposed a $650,000 civil penalty. Primary source: U.S. Department of Justice — Experian Consumer Services Agrees to Injunction and $650,000 Civil Penalty: https://www.justice.gov/usao-cdca/pr/experian-consumer-services-agrees-injunction-and-650000-civil-penalty-allegedly