June 20, 2005
The credit reporting agency Experian denies it is responsible for the abandonment of thousands of confidential consumer data records but a spokesman says the company has dispatched two employees to Topeka, Kansas, to examine the records.
As ConsumerAffairs.com reported on June 16, tens of thousands of consumer records were left unattended and unsecured when an office building formerly occupied by the Topeka Credit Bureau was sold. The new owner of the building, Augie Bogina, has been trying to have the files safely removed since last fall.
Susan Henson, an Experian spokesperson, said the credit agency is not responsible for the data, as any credit or consumer-related reports were already returned to Experian in October 2003, when the building was sold.
The building apparently changed hands at least once before being bought by Kent Hollins, a lawyer and owner of several collection agencies, who in turn sold it to Bogina, a political consultant.
"We were very sorry to find out this had happened", Henson said. "Experian has established policies and procedures for the sharing of data, and we do not leave data unsecured."
According to Henson, Experian purchased the assets of the credit reporting business of Credit Bureau of Topeka, Inc., in October 2003. As part of the agreement, Experian provided its credit reporting services to the bureau, which also handled transactions relating to mortgages, debt collections, and other related businesses.
"We never took possession of the office or assets themselves", Henson said.
When the Topeka Credit Bureau abruptly dissolved not long after the agreement was reached, the building's new owner Hollins "boxed and shipped" all credit-related data back to Experian.
However, the reports by the collection agency - including names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and information tabulated from Experian's credit services - were left behind.
According to Bogina, Hollins' advice regarding disposal of the records was: "Take them out back and throw them in the trash".
Henson said Experian was not aware of the situation until recently.
"We were not aware of the dissolution of the credit bureau, nor of the data being left behind," she said, adding that Experian performs "an incredible amount of due diligence" when entering into partnerships with local credit agencies or third parties who want to use Experian's credit data.
"We have established policies, procedures, and guidelinesany collection agency using Experian must abide by our subscriber agreement," she said
Asked if Experian had any guidelines for the disposal of data records such as those in Topeka, Henson conceded that, "nothing like this has ever happened before" but that the agency would be looking into it.
"We handle things like this on a case-by-case basis", she said.
As to the possibility that third parties using Experian's data may require regular monitoring or follow-ups, Henson said, "I'll have to look into that and get back to you."
Compounding the problem was that Experian's first response to Bogina's inquiry was to farm the matter out to The Staubach Company, a Texas real estate firm that handles Experian's American property transactions.
"This was wrongly interpreted as a 'facilities' call", Henson said.
Experian sent two of its agents to Topeka on June 17th to make contact with Bogina and assist him with disposing of the data properly.
"We want to commend Mr. Bogina for his handling of the situation," Henson said. "This is a very convoluted story."
