Canadians could cash in on proposed class-action lawsuit against Equifax
Canadians who use Equifax to monitor their credit score could be a part of a proposed class-action lawsuit against the company.
Plaintiff Solomon Abudarham submitted an application before the Quebec Superior Court to launch a class action against the credit bureau company in January.
According to the class action application, he alleges that his credit file — which Equifax holds, administers, and controls — was repeatedly accessed by Borrowell, a third-party credit monitoring platform, over an extended period.
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The claim says Abudarham was “completely unaware of the existence of such access and had not consented to the disclosure of his personal information to any third party.”
Borrowell is a financial services platform that gives users access to their credit score through Equifax systems.
The class action states that Abudarham has never opened an account with Borrowell, nor did he allow the platform to access his credit file.
“However, it has been established that an unauthorized third party was able to
fraudulently create an account in his name and, by this means, access his entire credit file and his personal information,” it reads.
In an email statement to Daily Hive, an Equifax spokesperson said the company would “vigorously defend these claims through the appropriate legal channels.”
“Equifax plays an important role in the financial lives of consumers, and we take that responsibility very seriously,” they stated.
Who’s a part of this proposed Equifax class action?
According to Twin Lisbet, the law firm representing Abudarham, the class action includes anyone living in Canada whose Equifax credit file was accessed, communicated or disclosed without their consent through third-party partner platforms by computer login and authentication mechanisms provided and controlled by Equifax since May 20, 2024.
This includes online financial services Borrowell, KOHO, Credit Karma, and Mogo.”All these platforms rely on comparable matching, validation, and transmission mechanisms, which are operated and controlled exclusively by Equifax,” reads the class action.
The class action seeks monetary compensation, moral and punitive damages, and orders requiring Equifax to strengthen its identification, matching, and authentication mechanisms. It also calls on the company to implement protective and alert measures to prevent unauthorized access to credit files.
The class-action lawsuit still needs to be authorized by a tribunal before it can proceed. The allegations have not been proven in court.
Canadians who want to stay updated on this class action can register on the law firm’s site.