Experian's tech chief defends credit scores: 'We're not Palantir'

"Today, I'm talking with Alex Lintner, who is the CEO of technology and software solutions at Experian, the credit reporting company. Experian is one of those multinationals that's so big and convoluted that it has multiple CEOs all over the world, so Alex and I spent quite a lot of time talking through the Decoder questions just so I could understand how Experian is structured, how it functions, and how the kinds of decisions Alex makes actually work in practice."

"That's really the tension at the heart of a company like Experian: Credit scores dominate so many aspects of our lives, and they are controlled and calculated in ways that it feels like we have very little direct influence over. At its heart, Experian's core service is data - data about people, about their money and what they do with it, about the decisions they make, the bills they pay or don't pay."

"if you want to participate in the economy in the way the vast majority of us do - renting an apartment, buying a car, getting a job, or applying for a mortgage or a student loan - you're part of Experian's ecosystem, whether you like it or not. You'll hear Alex talk about "consent" a whole lot in this episode, and he'll argue that you can opt out,"

Experian functions as a multinational with multiple regional leaders while a centralized technology arm manages global technical responsibilities. The technology arm is responsible for security, privacy, and AI across extensive repositories of personal financial data. Interaction with Experian's systems is effectively required for many common economic activities, including renting, buying, hiring, and borrowing. Consent mechanisms are emphasized, yet meaningful opt-outs remain constrained because numerous services depend on credit data. Credit scores shape many life outcomes and are produced by controlled data processes that give individuals limited direct control. Data quality and portrayal directly affect life convenience when records present favorable behavior.

Read at The Verge