How to challenge an inquiry you never authorized
Inquiries need permissible purpose. If you didn't apply, the bureau has to answer for it.
Under FCRA §1681b, a company can only pull your report with a permissible purpose — usually your own application or an existing account relationship. An inquiry from a lender you never contacted, in a state you've never lived in, or on a date you weren't applying for anything, is worth challenging on exactly those terms.
Frame it as a permissible-purpose question, not a general dispute: name the inquiry, name the date, and state that you did not apply for or authorize that pull. Inquiries themselves are minor point-wise, but an unexplained one can be the first visible sign of identity theft.
The rest of this is inside the portal
The step-by-step tactics, exact wording, and escalation sequence live in your Fix My Reports workspace, where they're applied to your own report items. Start with a $1 trial, then $50/month — cancel anytime.