Chris Hoofnagle quoted in The Register-Guard, August 26, 2012
In the case of identity theft, creditors simply pass off the costs to merchants and consumers, he said. The credit reporting agencies have little incentive to inform consumers that their numbers may be compromised because it would cost them money, Hoofnagle said. “Consumers are not customers to CRAs (credit reporting agencies), businesses are. Businesses prefer to have more information, even if some of that information is incorrect, than to have less,” he said. “Consumers have no way to opt out of the credit reporting system or to otherwise influence how these firms operate.”