[{"pubDate":"Mon, 05 Oct 2026 14:07:46 +0200","titre":"Keep FCRA in the foreground when the subject is background screening","url":"https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/blog/2014/04/keep-fcra-foreground-when-subject-background-screening","id":3198181,"description":"Keep FCRA in the foreground when the subject is background screening chundycz April 9, 2014 | 12:13AM Keep FCRA in the foreground when the subject is background screening By Lesley Fair When the talk turns to Big Data, part of the conversation is about all the public information available about people's lives – and how companies market it to prospective employers, landlords, etc.  Two cases just announced by the FTC  serve as a cautionary reminder to members of the industry that what they do may be subject to the long-standing consumer protections of the  Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) .  InfoTrack, an Illinois company, and San Diego-based Instant Checkmate will be paying civil penalties to settle FTC lawsuits that they violated the FCRA.  Is it time for an FCRA refresher at your business? Instant Checkmate marketed its reports as a way for prospective employers and landlords to investigate applicants.  For example, the company advertised that one of the “GOOD REASONS to get instant criminal checks on anyone right now” was to “check out tenants before they rent.”  It also used a Google Ad Words campaign to make sure its site appeared when people searched for background checks on nannies, babysitters, maids, and housekeepers.  What kind of information would buyers get?  Current and previous addresses, birth certificates, arrest histories, and marriage and divorce records, to name just a few examples. InfoTrack offered similar services to employers nationwide, including background screening reports with people’s driving records, education and employment information, criminal histories, and even records from sex offender registries. How does the FCRA come in?  The law defines a “consumer report” as a “communication of any information” by a consumer reporting agency (CRA) that bears on a person’s “credit worthiness, credit standing, credit capacity, character, general reputation, personal characteristics, or mode of living” which is used (or expected to be used) as a factor in establishing their eligibility for credit, insurance, employment, or other reasons outlined in the law. According to the FTC, what Instant Checkmate and InfoTrack were doing triggered the FCRA.  For example, companies covered by the law must follow procedures to assure their reports are as accurate as possible, must take steps to see that those using their reports have permissible purposes for accessing them, and must provide required User Notices explaining key protections for consumers.  The law imposes special requirements when CRAs provide reports containing public record information that could have an adverse effect on a person’s ability to get a job.  In that case, the CRA must either: 1) notify the consumer that it’s reporting the information in the public record; or 2) maintain “strict procedures” – that’s the language in the law – designed to ensure the reported public information is complete and up to date. You’ll want to read the complaints for specifics of where the FTC says the companies fell short, but one example cited in the lawsuit against InfoTrack offers an object lesson on why FCRA protections are so important to consumers – and how the consequences can be devastating when companies don’t live up to the law.  According to the FTC, the reports InfoTrack provided to prospective employers included information about whether a job applicant was on the National Sex Offender Registry.  The employer would provide the first and last name and the date of birth to help InfoTrack with its search.  The problem was that before the fall of 2011, no date of birth was available for many names on the Registry.  If InfoTrack’s search found more than one person with the same first and last name, it reported a “possible match” to employers and gave them reports that included several different people with the","source":"FTC USA Business Blog Posts"},{"id":3069461,"description":"Neutral Citation Number: [2026] EWCA Crim 1002 Case No: 202501394 B4 In the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) on appeal from the Crown Court sitting at Woolwich HHJ Aubrey KC 01MP1305723 31 July 2026 Before: President of the King’s Bench Division Mrs Justice Cutts His Honour Judge Nigel Lickley KC Between: R -v- Kevin Kelenda The post R -v- Kevin Kelenda appeared first on Courts and Tribunals Judiciary","source":"Judgement Courts Tribunals England Wales","pubDate":"Sat, 01 Aug 2026 08:09:40 +0200","titre":"R -v- Kevin Kelenda","url":"https://www.judiciary.uk/judgments/r-v-kevin-kelenda/"},{"source":"Judgement Courts Tribunals England Wales","description":"Neutral Citation Number: [2026] EWCA Civ 990 Case No: CA-2026-001246 In the Court of Appeal (Civil Division) on appeal from the Family Court at Cardiff Her Honour Judge Scannell CF25C50176 29 July 2026 Before: Lord Justice Edis (Vice President of the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division)) Lord Justice Peter Jackson Lord Justice Dingemans (Senior President of Tribunals) F (Children: Placement Orders: Proportionality) The post F (Children: Placement Orders: Proportionality) appeared first on Courts and Tribunals Judiciary","id":3061302,"titre":"F (Children: Placement Orders: Proportionality)","url":"https://www.judiciary.uk/judgments/f-children-placement-orders-proportionality/","pubDate":"Wed, 29 Jul 2026 14:06:38 +0200"},{"pubDate":"Wed, 29 Jul 2026 08:10:47 +0200","titre":"R -v- Natasha Akhtar and others","url":"https://www.judiciary.uk/judgments/r-v-natasha-akhtar-and-others/","id":3060363,"description":"Neutral Citation Number: [2026] EWCA Crim 951 Case Nos: 202303048 B4, 202303062 B4 & 202303020 B4 In the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) on appeal from the Crown Court at Leicester HHJ Spencer KC T20227026 28 July 2026 Before: Lord Justice Jeremy Baker Mr Justice Bryan His Honour Judge Simon Hirst The Honorary Recorder of Lincoln (Sitting as a Judge of the High Court) Between: Ameer Jamal Sanaf Gulammustafa Natasha Akhtar -v- Rex The post R -v- Natasha Akhtar and others appeared first on Courts and Tribunals Judiciary","source":"Judgement Courts Tribunals England Wales"},{"url":"https://www.judiciary.uk/judgments/r-v-william-osmond/","titre":"R -v- William Osmond","pubDate":"Tue, 28 Jul 2026 14:08:38 +0200","description":"Neutral Citation Number: [2026] EWCA Crim 979 Case No: 202304377 B1 In the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) on appeal from the Central Criminal Court Her Honour Judge Rebecca Trowler KC 202304377 B1 28 July 2026 Before: Lord Justice Males Mrs Justice Cutts His Honour Judge Andrew Lees Between: Rex -v- William Osmond The post R -v- William Osmond appeared first on Courts and Tribunals Judiciary","id":3058514,"source":"Judgement Courts Tribunals England Wales"},{"source":"Judgement Courts Tribunals England Wales","id":3052508,"description":"Neutral Citation Number: [2026] EWCA Crim 957 Case No: 202403091 B5 In the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) on appeal from Winchester Crown Court Bright J 24 July 2026 Before: Lord Justice Dingemans Senior President of Tribunals Mr Justice Murray HH Judge Andrew Lees Between: Hongchi Xiao -v- Rex The post Hongchi Xiao -v- Rex appeared first on Courts and Tribunals Judiciary","pubDate":"Sat, 25 Jul 2026 08:09:34 +0200","url":"https://www.judiciary.uk/judgments/hongchi-xiao-v-rex/","titre":"Hongchi Xiao -v- Rex"},{"titre":"In the matter of contempt proceedings against Rajiv Menon KC","url":"https://www.judiciary.uk/judgments/in-the-matter-of-contempt-proceedings-against-rajiv-menon-kc-3/","pubDate":"Sat, 25 Jul 2026 08:09:34 +0200","description":"Neutral Citation Number: [2026] EWCA Crim 966 Case No: 202602679/B3 In the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) on appeal from the crown court at Woolwich Mrs Justice Cheema Grubb 24 July 2026 Before: Lord Justice Males Mrs Justice Cutts In the matter of contempt proceedings against Rajiv Menon KC The post In the matter of contempt proceedings against Rajiv Menon KC appeared first on Courts and Tribunals Judiciary","id":3052509,"source":"Judgement Courts Tribunals England Wales"},{"pubDate":"Thu, 23 Jul 2026 14:06:00 +0200","titre":"Mohammad Alazawi -v- R","url":"https://www.judiciary.uk/judgments/mohammad-alazawi-v-r/","source":"Judgement Courts Tribunals England Wales","id":3048321,"description":"Neutral Citation Number: [2026] EWCA Crim 947 Case No: 202501935 B4, 2025028670 B4 In the Court of Appeal (Criminal Division) on appeal from the Crown Court at Southwark His Honour Judge Gregory Perrins T20237059 23 July 2026 Before: Lady Justice May DBE Mr Justice Saini His Honour Judge Picton (Sitting as a Judge of the CACD) Between: Mohammad Alazawi -v- Rex The post Mohammad Alazawi -v- R appeared first on Courts and Tribunals Judiciary"},{"source":"Judgement Courts Tribunals England Wales","description":"Case number: PJ01C At the Central Criminal Court Old Bailey London 17 July 2026 Sentencing remarks of His Honour Judge Martyn Levett DL Between: R -v- Mark Pearce Markie Collins The post R -v- Pearce and Collins appeared first on Courts and Tribunals Judiciary","id":3041668,"url":"https://www.judiciary.uk/judgments/r-v-pearce-and-collins/","titre":"R -v- Pearce and Collins","pubDate":"Mon, 20 Jul 2026 14:07:11 +0200"}]