Amazon.com Inc. has been ordered to pay a $2.25 million civil penalty after the U.S. government alleged that the company violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) by failing to properly provide transaction records to victims of identity theft.
The Justice Department announced the stipulated court order following an investigation and referral by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
According to the government’s complaint, Amazon failed to provide identity theft victims with records of transactions involving individuals who were allegedly using the victims’ identification to commit fraud. The government also alleged that Amazon did not provide the requested records within the 30 days required under the FCRA.
Under the court order, Amazon must provide transaction records to identity theft victims who request them when the records are alleged to be connected to identity theft. The records must be provided free of charge within 30 days of a valid request.
Amazon can require victims to verify their identity and provide information supporting their identity theft claim before releasing the records.
The order also requires Amazon to publish a notice on its website explaining to identity theft victims how they can request the relevant transaction records.
“Consumers whose identities have been stolen should not face unnecessary red tape when they investigate how their identities were misused and seek to clear their names,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division.
The Justice Department said it will continue working with the FTC to protect consumers affected by identity theft.
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The United States was represented in the case by Assistant Directors Lory D. Alexander and Zachary A. Dietert from the Enforcement Section of the Civil Division’s Enforcement and Affirmative Litigation Branch, working with staff from the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.
Amazon Ordered to Pay $2.25 Million Over Identity Theft Records
