A
group of U.S. representatives has opened an investigation of companies that
collect and sell marketing databases and sales contact lists.
On
Wednesday, Reps. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Joe Barton (R-Texas) sent letters to Acxiom Corp., Epsilon, Equifax Inc.,
Experian, Harte-Hanks, Intelius Inc., Fair Isaac Corp. (FICO), Merkle Inc. and
Meredith Corp., requesting such information as the sources of the data they
collect; racial, ethnic or religious information collected; methods of data
collection, such as social media or mobile usage; and consumer data access and
opt-out methods. The letters requested information from 14 detailed and
separate categories.
