Do not use coin base exchange. Running un-authorized credit check.

10 points·mkrishnan··3 comments

They are trying to do credit check without explaining the user before doing that. exploiting non-tech savvy users

Coinbase and others including Square, and pretty much any other Payment Provider that offers accounts with no physical signature card use id validation services that generally pull information from your credit report in the form of validating questions to answer and potentially a color coded range of your credit score (getting the actual score results in a "hard" credit hit.) These do not reflect on your credit report and are referred to as "Soft credit checks." You would get much more explicit warning if it were not as required by law. These types of blanket statements cover the soft checks. The action they are referring to is terminating an account with an active bankruptcy or failing an OFAC or PEP (politically exposed persons) check.

Looks like they state it pretty clearly in their User Agreement: (https://www.coinbase.com/legal/user_agreement)

"(e) Authorize Coinbase to, directly or through third parties, (i) make any inquiries we consider necessary to verify your identity and/or account information, and (ii) request and obtain any consumer report, credit report or similar information relating to you and to take action we reasonably deem necessary based on the results of such inquiries and reports, and hereby authorize any and all third parties to which such inquiries or requests may be directed to fully respond to such inquiries or requests."

... I'm not saying that they're awesome for doing this; but I don't think it's accurate to portray their running a credit check as "unauthorized". You definitely authorized it.

Any proof?

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